Don't Let the Locals Bite
by Teacher Bear
Summary: Things have calmed down in Riverbend, MO, until a temporary doctor is asked to step in. Meanwhile in Care-A-Lot, temporary replacements are sent to Paradise Valley while the Luck Family visits for booster shots. Part 4 in the series.


**Don't Let the Locals Bite**

Chapter 1: Doctors and Professors

Late October in New England was well known for its unsurpassed beauty. The leaves were always in their peak near the later parts of fall, showing off colors ranging from the softest shades of yellow to the most passionate shades of red. As the foliage outside continued to increase its beauty in the upcoming cold, two doctors were sitting inside at Boston General Hospital playing a game of cribbage during the currently slow morning.

"Double pair, royal," said a very snooty old doctor. "That's 121 points, and the game." The snooty doctor laughed sarcastically as his young opponent looked hopelessly at his cards. "Damn cribbage!" the young opponent replied, tossing his hand of cards down on the table. The snooty old doctor giggled arrogantly at his young adversary as he gleefully whistled one of his favorite parts of an opera. "Ah, Dr. Baldwin, for a brief moment you thought you had me," the snooty doctor smiled as he tallied up the points, "but I scooted away."

Dr. Baldwin took a deep breath to calm his nerves, which were beginning to run thin. "What's the damage, Dr. Winchester?" Dr. Baldwin asked, taking an agitated sip from his drink. "Well," the arrogant Dr. Winchester said as he finished his tallying, "in round figures you owe me $76.11. Dr. Baldwin, I would like to thank you for refreshing my memory on this game. I have not played it since my days in the Korean War with your dolt of a late father, the late Colonel Baldwin. God rest him, of course."

Dr. Baldwin was about to reply to Dr. Winchester's snide remark, but was interrupted when his secretary told him that he had a phone call. "I thought I told you to hold my calls while I'm in a meeting," Dr. Baldwin said to his secretary. "I'm sorry Dr. Baldwin," the secretary said, "but the doctor on the other end said that this was important and, well, I figured that what he had to say was more important than what you were doing in your meeting." Dr. Baldwin sneered, mostly because he knew that she was right. "Alright, I'll take the call," he said as he went to his phone.

Dr. Baldwin picked up his phone irritably. "Dr. Baldwin here," he said into the receiver. "Yes… who? Oh, it's you. It's been a while." The man on the other end continued to speak with Dr. Baldwin while Dr. Winchester looked over his tally for errors. "What? Oh yeah, that's that little hospital in the middle of no where Missouri. What do they want?" The man on the other end of the phone continued to speak. "A replacement instructor? How long do they need him for?" the doctor asked, awaiting the other man on the other end's answer. "A few weeks? For a bunch of interns? I'm sorry. It's just not possible."

While still on the phone, Dr. Baldwin noticed Dr. Winchester laughing arrogantly once again. "Dr. Baldwin, I made a small error," he said. "You owe me $76.17." Dr. Baldwin, clearly growing weary of Dr. Winchester's behavior, said into his phone, "It's possible."

After Dr. Baldwin had hung up the phone, he sat back down with his arrogant adversary. "Care to put your head in the noose again, Dr. Baldwin?" Dr. Winchester said as he began shuffling the cards. "I'd love to," Dr. Baldwin said conversationally, "but you won't have time. For the next few weeks you'll be filling in for an ill instructor for a group of interns at a former veteran's hospital in River Bend, Missouri." "River Bend, Missouri?" Dr. Winchester asked, a bit confused. "Right," Dr. Baldwin said. "You'll catch the next flight out to Kansas City in a couple of hours where you'll take a bus out to the hospital. You'll be reporting to Dr. Silverberg when you get there."

Dr. Winchester was beside himself with disbelief. "Why send one of your best doctors out to a po-dunk little country town?" "Relax. It's just like a few weeks here," Dr. Baldwin said cavalierly, "accept for the humidity, and the snakes. Oh, and the mosquitoes are about the size of your thumb, but I'm sure that's nothing you can't handle. Anyway, you'd better get moving Winchester."

Dr. Winchester was beside himself with disbelief. "Surely you jest?" Dr. Winchester said, hoping that the agitated doctor was just pulling his leg. "Surely, you go," Dr. Baldwin replied, making it perfectly clear that he wasn't joking.

Dr. Winchester stood up slowly, hoping to look dignified as he did so. "You know," he said, "I had a conversation much like this with your late father. He too was a fool among men." Dr. Baldwin stood up from where he was sitting so that he could be eye to eye with the aged doctor. "Yes, but the fools are often the ones smart enough to be in charge! Now stop dawdling and start packing!"

*****

It was a dim, chilly day over the Pacific Ocean. The wind blew fiercely, whipping around an old, run down WWII German zeppelin like a kite on a string. Within the old, icy zeppelin stood a scraggly old man dressed in dark blue winter clothes. He looked out the window of his floating airship to the scenery below, admiring the placid view. A smile came across his cold, icy blue face a he took in what he was seeing. "Frostbite," he said in a cold, crackling voice, calling to his assistant. "Come quickly. Look at this."

Taking a break from checking the zeppelin's gauges, a heavy set young man adorned in heavier winter apparel came lumbering toward the window. "Whatcha looking at, Pr. Cold Heart?" he said as he pressed his large nose against the window in hopes of seeing something interesting. "Watch it you nitwit!" Pr. Cold Heart said, shoving his assistant aside so that he could look out the window with him.

Frostbite's face screwed up in confusion as he continued to stare at the wide blue ocean, all the while noticing Cold Heart smiling happily. "Uh, what am I supposed to be seeing?" he asked, still staring out the window. Cold Heart rolled his eyes as he bopped his assistant on the head. "Real estate, you cold little clot!" he explained. "Just look at that island out there in the distance. It's covered in snow capped mountains just waiting for us to move right in."

Frostbite looked out the window again, this time glad to know what exactly he was supposed to be looking at. "Gotcha boss," he said with a little shiver. "Nice and cold, just like you like it."

With a broad and wicked smile across his face, Cold Heart turned to his stout little assistant. "Set course for that island," he commanded. "Yes, sir, Pr. Cold Heart," Frostbite answered, "but before I do, I'd better go wake up my aunt. She'll want to see this."

Cold Heart rolled his eyes in frustration. "Can't that wait?" he exclaimed. "I've got to pick out a location to build my icy fortress on, and the last thing I need is her 'womanly suggestions' to pester me." "Duh, okay," Frostbite replied. "I don't think Auntie Freeze will like that much, but okay."

*****

Meanwhile in the billowy softness of Care-A-Lot, someone was displeased with his current medical situation…

"There you go little Big Heart," Take Care Bear said after giving the baby Care Bear a shot. "No need to cry. You're all done. You and your mom can go home now." The cub's mother held her little one closely as he began to calm down from his shot. "Poor little baby," the little cub's mother said as she tried to comfort her cub. "Will he be in pain long?" Take Care pat the little cub on the head. "He'll be just fine, Love-A-Lot," Take Care said as she put a green band aid on the crying cub's arm. "Besides, it's better for him to have a little needle pain now than end up with polio. Now if you don't mind following me out to the waiting room, we'll update your son's records and get him a sticker."

Out in the waiting room, Hugs and Tugs were having fun amusing baby Showbiz Bear while she and her mother, Cheer Bear, awaited getting her baby shots. The twin cubs turned to Love-A-Lot and Big Heart as they came out. "Goodie goodie gosh! Big Heart's done!" Hugs smiled as she saw Love-A-Lot coming out with her whimpering son. "Hey little buddy," Tugs said as he walked up to the cub. "That wasn't so bad. Now you're a big Care Bear like me, and you can stop crying now like a big boy's supposed to do. High five?" The little blue bear offered his paw for Big Heart to slap. Being one of Big Heart's favorite games, the little auburn bear gave his friend a meek little high five.

While Hugs and Tugs continued to amuse Big Heart, Take Care and Love-A-Lot worked on some paperwork to help update the little cub's records. "His next immunization will be in two months," Take Care said, making a note in the cub's medical record. "In the mean time, why don't we get the little guy a sticker and send him on his way."

Hugs and Tugs eyes lit up with excitement when they saw the sticker sheets taken out from the drawer. "Can we help pick a sticker?" they said in unison, jumping up and down with enthusiasm. "If it's okay with you, Love-A-Lot," Take Care replied, looking to the cub's mother for approval. Love-A-Lot giggled happily at the enthusiastic twins. "That sounds like a good idea," she said. "He really seems to like your choices."

Take Care Bear gave the cubs the sheets of stickers for them to decide from. "Ooooo!" Hugs said as she peeled a sticker off the sheet. "This butterfly sticker is so pretty! Don't you think Big Heart?" Tugs wrinkled up his nose as his sister placed the sticker on Big Heart's chest. "That's a girly sticker," he said as he peeled his own sticker off of another sheet. "Why don't you try this dinosaur one instead. All boys like dinosaurs!" "Well," Hugs said as she looked over the sheets again, "maybe he'd like a unicorn instead. They're pretty neat." Tugs looked apprehensive about his sister's sticker choice. "They're okay," Tugs replied as his sister placed the sticker on the cub, "but I bet he'd like this space ship sticker better. Space ships are cooler than girly horses any day, right Big Heart?" Hugs took offense to her brother's response. "No they're not!" Hugs retorted, pealing a sticker of a flower off of the sheet and placing it on the cub. "Are too!" Tugs said back, sticking a truck sticker on Big Heart. "Big Heart's a boy, Hugs! He needs to have boy stickers!"

The cubs continued bickering back and forth about each other's choice in stickers, placing more and more stickers on the cub as they continued to argue. "Hugs! Tugs! Stop it!" Take Care Bear shouted, taking the sticker sheets away from them. "I think Big Heart has had enough stickers for one day."

The two cubs looked at their little friend, who had peeled one of his many stickers off and stuck it in his mouth. "Ewww! He's eating the glittery cricket sticker!" Hugs said. "Eating bugs is gross, Big Heart. You don't want to be a yucky boy, do you? You want to be a nice little boy who doesn't get into a mess, not a yucky one who eats yucky things."

Tugs was about to protest the comment his sister had made, but one look from Take Care Bear ended that idea. "Why don't you two go get me some more stickers from the storage closet in the Hall of Hearts?" she asked, hoping that her request would calm them down long enough for her to give her next patient a shot. "Sure thing," they said, their tone changing from agitated to eager. "Good," Take Care smiled. "Be sure to get a good variety, and don't cover Care-A-Lot with them on your way back here."

The two cubs agreed to Take Care Bear's request as they left her office, racing each other as they went. "I'm sorry Love-A-Lot," Take Care said as she removed a few more stickers from the covered cub. "That's okay," Love-A-Lot said. "Big Heart doesn't seem to mind. Besides, he needs a bath anyway." Take Care smiled as she took a sticker off of Big Heart's foot. "Okay then, no harm done," Take Care said, patting the little cub on the head. "Now why don't you go home and get some rest."

Love-A-Lot and Big Heart left the office, leaving a few stickers on the ground as they went. "Alright then," Take Care said, turning to Cheer Bear and her daughter, Showbiz Bear. "Your turn little lady. When you're all done I'll give you a nice unisex sticker, like a star or something."

*****

Dr. Silverberg was happy to hear that a replacement was coming to help teach his interns. The previous instructor had had a stroke during his class, and a replacement was direly needed. At the same time, it was lucky that the instructor had his stoke while at the hospital. He got treatment right away, and seemed to be recovering slowly but nicely.

Dr. Silverberg smiled as he stapled his transfer paperwork together. "It never surprises me how much paperwork goes through this hospital," he said to himself as he set down his stapler. "Ah well, more work for my new receptionist. I wonder how she's doing. Knowing Soon Lee, things are going smoothly with her training. I'd better go check up on our new recruit, but before I do, I'd better check in with those cute little cubs of hers in the playroom."

Up at the receptionist's desk, Soon Lee was busy with her new little trainee. "Here, put this one away under the 'out patient' section, would you?" Soon Lee said to her little assistant as the two filed paperwork. The little blue bear hopped down from a chair to take the paperwork. She adjusted her glasses as she looked at what she had to file. "Right away," Teacher Bear said as she took the papers to the filing cabinet. "It sure was nice of Dr. Silverberg to let me take on this part time job. It's great that I can finally help you and Max out financially and still bring the cubs into work with me. I sure hope their having fun in the playroom." Soon Lee smiled as she typed something into the computer. "Dr. Silverberg is a good man," Soon Lee said as she continued her data entry. "I can't think of anyone else better to run this hospital than him."

Overhearing the girls at the receptionist's desk, Dr. Silverberg felt at ease with his hiring choice. "Goodness me! My ears must be burning," Dr. Silverberg said as he came up to the receptionist's desk. "It appears that two little someone's are talking about me." The two ladies giggled a bit at what Dr. Silverberg said, feeling a bit embarrassed at being overheard. "Well Miss Mulcahey, I got an update from Nurse Jones that your kids have been behaving themselves nicely in the playroom. In fact, we can't seem to keep Nurse Jones out of there! She's really taken quite a shine to your little ones."

Teacher Bear giggled as she thought of the kindly nurse who helped examine one of her little ones a few months back. "She's not in any trouble with checking in on them so much, is she?" Teacher Bear asked. "Not at all," Dr. Silverberg smiled. "It's a rather slow day, which is always a good thing. Besides, she's just been checking in on them between her rounds. No harm done."

Teacher Bear smiled appreciatively at Dr. Silverberg. "Oh good," she said. "I'll have to check on them again as soon as we finish these out patient files. Perhaps I'll find Nurse Jones in there so that I can thank her personally for all her help checking in on the kids." The head doctor smiled approvingly. "That sounds like a good plan," Dr. Silverberg said. "Oh, and while we're on the topic of filing, would you mind filing this away?"

Soon Lee took the paperwork from Dr. Silverberg, examining it closely. "Sure. What's it for?" Soon Lee said, as she continued to look over the paperwork. Dr. Silverberg pointed to the name on the sheet of paper. "We're getting a new instructor in later on this evening for the new class of interns," he explained. "We don't have many free doctors around here since this is such a small staff to start with, and Boston General has many experienced doctors and surgeons to spare."

Soon Lee smiled as she finished looking through the file she was about to put up. "Hey, I know this guy," she said as she peeked at the name of the doctor. "My husband was in the Korean War with this doctor. According to him, this doctor is really good." "Great!" Dr. Silverberg said enthusiastically. "I'm glad he won't be a stranger around here."

Soon Lee put up the file as she was instructed to do. "I will warn you, doctor," she said as she closed the file cabinet, "he's a bit full of himself. Max would know more about that than I would though." Dr. Silverberg smiled appreciatively. "Thanks for the heads up," he said. "I'll have to pop by X-ray so that your husband can give me a good warning on what we'll be dealing with over the next few weeks. I'll catch up with you ladies later."

Soon Lee and Teacher Bear waved goodbye as Dr. Silverberg walked away. "So this doctor was in the same unit as Francis?" Teacher Bear asked as she wiped a smudge off of her glasses. Soon Lee nodded blandly, rolling her eyes a bit. "Yep. He's a real stiff upper lip," Soon Lee replied. "He's not the nicest guy in the world, but he gets the job done." "Well, speaking of getting jobs done," Teacher Bear said as she closed her cabinet, "all the out patient files are finished. I'm going to go check on the kids." Soon Lee looked to see that the out patient files were where they were supposed to be. "Okay then," Soon Lee said happily. "I'll see you back here when you're done. There will be plenty of paperwork waiting for you."

Chapter 2: Turbulent Travels

In a few less than enthusiastic hours, Dr. Winchester had gotten himself packed and arrived at Logan International Airport. After getting checked in successfully, he discovered that Dr. Baldwin had cheaped out on him by signing him up to travel in coach rather than first class. Being from good breeding, Dr. Winchester was used to the comfort and overall leg room that came with flying first class. He was very disappointed not only in Dr. Baldwin's choice of seating, but also by the young doctor's attitude in placing him in coach.

The old doctor was in the process of placing his bag into the overhead compartment over his seat when he heard someone complaining behind him. "Hey! Move it buddy!" the annoying man griped. "I gotta put my bag up there too!" Dr. Winchester rolled his eyes as he turned his head to address the rude man. "Surely you could practice a minuet amount of patience for an old man trying to put away his things?" he said as calmly as he could while trying to get his bag into the compartment. "Yeah… well… lemme do it," the man said, trying to sound more humane to the elderly doctor. "Would you?" Dr. Winchester replied, trying to sound as sarcastic as possible while still being able to get away with it. "Well today is my lucky day then. It's not every other day that I am in the company of such a good Samaritan. And how fortunate for me that your muscles are so finely tuned. You must have to concentrate on using them far more than your patience, or else who knows what kind of physical shape you'd be in. Dear me! Here, take this and place it up there, would you? Thank you…"

The clever old doctor took his seat before the angry man could reply with some sort of remark. "Oh come now. Do you need a stewardess or something?" Dr. Winchester said as the man stood dumbfounded and angry before him. "Stewardess! Oh stew… you there. Do come help with my bags. I'm afraid my newfound little friend here is having problems helping me out with them."

The stewardess rolled her eyes at the two men in the isle. Something told her this was going to be a very long flight. "Of course sir," she said as she offered to take the bag from the agitated man. "Is there anything else I can do for you while I'm here?" "Yes, in fact there is now that you mention it," Dr. Winchester said as the stewardess began to cram the bag into the overhead compartment. "A glass of ginger ale and a few pillows would be lovely. These seats are terribly uncomfortable. I don't know how you expect for someone to sit through a flight in such dreadfully stiff seats." After struggling a bit with the two men's bags, the stewardess was able to close the over head compartment. "Very well, sir," she said. "As soon as the plane is in the air and you can take down your tray table safely I will bring you a drink. In the mean time, I need to turn on the instructional video for plane safety. I'll be back with your pillows shortly."

The fasten seat belt sign came on as the stewardess left to go get some pillows for the snooty old doctor. "Attention all passengers, this is your captain speaking," came the voice of pilot. "Y'all can call me Captain Skip. I'll be flying y'all to Kansas City International Airport." "Skip?" Dr. Winchester said to himself. "Good lord! That's a name better suited for a hyperactive terrier than it is for the captain of an air vesicle!" Captain Skip let out a playful sound as he continued with his announcement. "If ya'll turn your attention to the TV screens," Captain Skip continued, "you'll notice the beginning of our in flight movie! … Just kidding, it's a safety video. Pay attention folks, this stuff will show you what to do in case old Skip has some sort of accident. Not that that'll happen of course, but it's stuff you gotta know."

"Stewardess!" Dr. Winchester bellowed out as soon as the safety movie came on. "Yes sir, I have your pillows," the stewardess said unenthusiastically, bringing two pillows to her annoying passenger. "It's not that my dear," Dr. Winchester said as he accepted the pillows. "I'm concerned about this… Captain Skip." "Oh, not to worry sir," the stewardess smiled. "Skip knows what he's doing. He used to crop dust before joining up with this airline. He can get out of just about any sticky situation. Now buckle up! Oh, and you wanted 7UP, right?" "Ginger ale," Dr. Winchester said irritably. "And what do you mean crop dusting? Don't these men have to be properly trained?"

The stewardess smiled wickedly as she walked away. "I'll be back with your drink just as soon as Skip has us up in the air and the plane stabilizes. Keep buckled now! You never know when Skip will try to show off."

Before Dr. Winchester could get in another word, the stewardess had disappeared behind a curtain. The old doctor let out a low, frightened whimper as the plane began to move forward. "We'll be skyward soon folks!" Captain Skip said as the plane began to move faster and faster. "Keep your eyes to the skies! It'll be a great flight! YEEEEEE-HA!"

*****

"You call this real estate?!?" echoed the loud, crackled voice of Auntie Freeze. Pr. Cold Heart nodded proudly, which Frostbite mimicked obediently. "This is the ideal place for all of my cold experiments," he explained, holding up a proud hand to the vacant, icy terrain. "Why, just look at it, Auntie. There's nothing but snow and ice for miles around. We've got all the privacy we've ever wanted and not a Care Bear around for miles. Why, I bet they couldn't find us in all this blusterinest, even if they tried!"

Auntie Freeze tightened her lips in frustration. It was beginning to get dark and she wondered just how safe this little slice of Cold Heart's heaven really was. "All right Cold Cuts," she smirked insultingly. "So you've got your perfect piece of paradise. What in blazes are you going to do with it? Stand here and let the wind blow up our bustles?"

Cold Heart let out a genuine smile as he dashed into his zeppelin. "Behold!" he said as he pulled a large, burlap sheet off of a misshapen contraption. "This machine will allow me to assemble an ice castle in little time." Auntie Freeze lifted an eyebrow in doubt as Cold Heart tried to move the machine out the door. "Frostbite! Help me!" Cold Heart grunted as he pushed and pulled the machine without success. Obediently, Frostbite went to help his boss, moving the machine with little difficulty out the front door of the zeppelin.

Once the machine was outside of the zeppelin, Cold Heart was able to begin his work. "Stand back!" he said as he pointed the nozzle of the machine at the mouth of a cave in the icy mountain. Auntie Freeze did as she was told, smiling sarcastically as she did so. "Stand back? Why, that's the most intelligent thing you've said all day," she replied as she stood away from the machine, giving Pr. Cold Heart an icy look of disappointment as he pushed a few buttons.

The machine whirled to life, its lights flashing blue and green as it began its operations. "Frostbite!" Cold Heart commanded. "Start gathering snow, and put it in this funnel part in the machine. We'll need it for construction." "Duh, right away boss!" Frostbite said stupidly, scooping up as much snow as he could carry. Once he got a large armful of snow, he went barreling toward the machine. The pile of snow he was carrying was so large that he could not see over it. "Look out!!!" Cold Heart and Auntie Freeze said together as Frostbite lumbered toward them, unable to see them. Before any of them could react, Frostbite had covered his superiors in snow. "You bumbling blockhead!" Cold Heart shouted, bopping Frostbite on the head. "Go inside the zeppelin and get a wheelbarrow. This way, you can see where you're going!" "Duh, okay boss," Frostbite replied dumbly, getting up to do as he was told.

Auntie Freeze shook snow from the fuzzy collar of her large winter coat. "I swear, sometimes I wonder about the gene pool in my family," she said as she began buttoning her coat. Cold Heart let out a low grunt. "It looks like the rotten apple doesn't fall too far from the tree, you rotten old goat," he added under his breath. "WHAT!!!" Auntie Freeze shouted, her nostrils flaring in insult. "I… I said that you have such an appealing coat," Cold Heart said to cover his insult. "Now, why don't you go inside while Frostbite and I work on the castle."

Auntie Freeze did not argue with the notion of going inside. She would rather be inside where it was peaceful that outside where there was idiocy. Sticking her nose into the air, Auntie Freeze went into the zeppelin while Cold Heart and Frostbite continued their work.

*****

After the brief spat at the doctor's office, Hugs and Tugs began making their way to the Hall of Hearts. Despite the little sticker argument they had earlier, the cubs seemed to be cooling off nicely. The sunshine, fresh air, and bright colors of Care-A-Lot seemed to be doing them a world of good.

"It's so pretty outside," Hugs said as she spun around happily with her arms in the air. Tugs giggled at his sister as she accidentally fell on her rump from spinning too fast. "Good thing Care-A-Lot has soft clouds or else we'd have to go back to Dr. Take Care's office for a bottom ouchie," he smiled. Hugs giggled at her brother's little joke as he helped her back to her feet. "Thanks Tugs," she said, giving the little blue bear one of her trade mark hugs. "Race ya to the Hall of Hearts!"

The two cubs dashed off in a hurry, laughing and waving to some of their older friends as they went. Tugs gently poked his sister in the shoulder as they raced. "Beat ya to that cloud bank!" he said as he pointed to a large, fluffy bank of clouds. "Not if I beat ya first!" Hugs shouted, pumping all her energy into a hard sprint. Tugs followed her in hot pursuit, running as fast as his little legs could carry him.

Together, the cubs jumped belly first into the cloud bank, laughing gleefully as the clouds surrounded them, covering them in their cottony softness. Upon seeing his sister emerging from the cloud bank, Tugs began to laugh again. "You look like the Cloud Keeper!" he giggled as he pointed to the clouds that had stuck to Hugs's face. "Oh yeah," Hugs said mischievously, balling up a few pawfuls of clouds and placing them on her brother's head. "Now you look like Shreeky!" Tugs giggled as he stood up and pretended to be the niece of the evil sorcerer. "Mr. Beastly! Do my laundry! Shine my shoes! Make me something that works!" he said melodramatically as Hugs rolled on the ground laughing.

As Hugs tried to regain her composure, she noticed something moving on a nearby flower. "Oh goodie, goodie gosh Tugs," she said, slowly creeping up to the flower on her paws and knees to get a better look. "It's a butterfly." Hugs very gently reached out her paw to the little butterfly, trying hard not to scare it away. The little butterfly slowly walked onto the little pink cub's paw. "Wow," Tugs said as he watched the butterfly crawl onto his sister's finger. "I wanna try!"

The little blue cub lunged at the flower, scaring the little butterfly enough to make it fly away. "Tugs! No!" Hugs exclaimed as her brother chased the little insect. "Don't worry Hugs. I know exactly what I'm doing." Tugs said as he jumped into the air, clapping his paws together in an attempt to catch the butterfly. Hugs gasped in horror as her brother nearly missed smashing the butterfly in his paws. "No, you don't know what you're doing!" Hugs yelped, grabbing her brother around the ankle, causing him to fall face first into the clouds. "You were gonna squish it!"

After the butterfly incident, Hugs and Tugs continued to bicker back and forth as they made their way to the Hall of Hearts. "Why'd you have to go and use up all of Take Care Bear's stickers anyway?" Hugs griped. "Me?" Tugs retorted. "You were the one who gave Big Heart that glittery cricket sticker that he ate!"

The cubs suddenly jumped from surprise when they each felt a feathery soft paw on their shoulders. "What seems to be the problem?" came the whistlely soft voice of Cozy Heart Penguin from behind them. "Nothin'," the cubs lied in unison as they avoided eye contact with the purple penguin. "Really?" Cozy Heart said conversationally. "Well, what were you talking about then? Sounds like you two were in the middle of a great little debate."

The two cubs eyeballed each other guilefully for ideas. "Um…" Tugs thought out loud. "We were just… uh… talkin' about stickers!" "Yeah! Stickers!" Hugs added in enthusiastically. "Take Care Bear has the best stickers! Doesn't she Tugs?" "She sure does Hugs!" Tugs replied, wrapping his arm around his sister's shoulder and giving Cozy Heart a thumbs up and a big cheesy grin. "Is that so?" Cozy Heart replied, hoping to keep this little conversation going in hopes of finding what the cubs were really talking about. "I never realized the crazy doctor had such nice stickers. What kinds of stickers does she have?" "Oh she's got lots and lots!" Hugs said, holding out her arms to emphasize Take Care Bear's supposedly massive supply of stickers. "She's got stars, and horses, and glittery pretty stickers!"

Cozy Heart noticed Tugs grimace a bit while his sister described the stickers. "What's the matter little fella?" Cozy Heart asked the little blue cub. Tugs hadn't realized that Cozy Heart had noticed the look on his face. "Oh, nothin'," he said, trying to cover his expression. Cozy Heart smiled as she continued her questioning. "Do you not like Take Care Bear's stickers?" Cozy Heart asked, hoping to spearhead the problem. "No, it's not that," Tugs said. "I just don't like girly stickers, you know? Boys aren't supposed to like girly stickers. They're supposed to like boy stickers, and Take Care has a whole bunch of them!" "No she doesn't," Hugs interrupted. "You stuck 'em all over Big Heart at her office, remember?" Tugs went on the defensive. "Well you stuck a whole bunch of girl stickers on him too!" Tugs replied back, causing the two cubs to begin bickering again.

Cozy Heart giggled at the two complaining cubs. "What's so funny!" the cubs blurted out in unison. "Why, you two of course," Cozy Heart giggled, glad that she could find what the problem was all about. "Isn't it rather silly to be fighting over a few silly stickers when there are more important things to use your brains for?"

The cubs stopped in their tracks. "You know, you're right," Tugs admitted, gently slapping his forehead as he thought about it. "Yeah," Hugs added. "Gosh, we were so wrapped up in our conversation that we almost forgot to go to the Hall of Hearts to get more stickers for Take Care Bear." "I thought you said Take Care Bear had 'this' many stickers," Cozy Heart said jokingly, spreading her wings out like Hugs had done earlier. "Well, yeah, she did," Hugs explained. "That was before we accidentally covered Big Heart in a lot of 'em."

Everyone let out a laugh as they though about poor baby Big Heart Bear covered in stickers. "We gotta get some more from the storage cabinet in the Hall of Hearts," Tugs explained. "Why don't I come with you," Cozy Heart said, putting a feathery paw on each of the children's shoulders. "Besides, I don't want to miss out on all the big activity going on around there."

The two cubs looked confused. "What's going on?" they asked. "Well, didn't ya hear?" Cozy Heart asked, getting the shaking of heads as an answer. "Goodness me! I'm surprised you two haven't heard the news. Good Luck Bear and Polite Panda will be arriving soon so that their twins can get their baby shots!"

A look of eagerness came upon the cubs faces. "Oh yeah!" Tugs said. "I forgot all about that. They'll be staying at our house while they're here in Care-A-Lot."

Chapter 3: Happy Landings

Auntie Freeze watched her nephew and idiot accomplice from the warmth and safety of the zeppelin. She figured that if all went wrong outside with the ice machine, she could just as easily fly away unscathed. All seemed to be going haywire as planned outside, but at least the castle was taking shape, even if that shape was undeterminable. Auntie Freeze's coat was still wet from her nephew dumping snow on her, but being inside the zeppelin helped her dry off. She had turned on a radio to drown out the sound of the loud machine and the sounds of Cold Heart bickering at Frostbite. The station was playing adult contemporary music, which she sat back to enjoy.

As the radio played a mellow James Taylor song, she started to hear the signal became distorted. "Deep greens and bl……. Hello? Good Luck Bear? Can you hear…….. colors I choose…" The radio signal cut in between the song Sweet Baby James and a conversation on a similar frequency. Auntie Freeze thought she recognized that voice and those names. She listened closely as the song continued to be interrupted. "Won't you let m…….. This is Bright Heart Raccoon calling from Care……. rock-a-bye sweet baby James……"

Auntie Freeze's eyes got wide with curiosity. "It can't be, could it?" she said to herself as she jumped up from her seat to run to the door. "Boys! Get in here!" she shouted. Cold Heart rolled his eyes as he shut off the ice machine. "What is it now? Can't you see we're busy?" Auntie Freeze grabbed Cold Heart by the scarf. "I've got something more important than a catawampus ice sculpture," she said as she dragged Cold Heart into the zeppelin, Frostbite following faithfully.

Auntie Freeze set Cold Heart down roughly in the chair she was enjoying. "Listen to the radio," she commanded. Cold Heart made an unappreciative noise. "I hate this mellow moody drivel," he said, turning off the radio. Auntie Freeze switched the radio back on. "No! Listen closer. I heard a signal coming through. It sounded like it was coming from the Care Bears!"

Cold Heart sat up with surprise. "What!?! Care Bears!?! Out here!?!" He flung himself toward the radio, gently tinkered with the knob to see if he could get a better frequency. The radio made some noises as Cold Heart tinkered with it, but in no time, he could hear a static riddled signal coming from Care-A-Lot. "This is Good Luck Bear. Is everything alright up there Bright Heart? Over," came the sound of someone through the radio. Cold Heart clapped his icy hands together gleefully. "That's them!" he said, his raspy voice riddled with delight. Frostbite scratched his head with confusion. "Duh, why are you happy to be hearing from the Care Bears?" he asked. Cold Heart bopped Frostbite on the head. "I'm eavesdropping you dunder head," he said. "If they're making any little plans, I'll be able to interrupt them, maybe even beat them once and for all!"

*****

Nestled away in the ice caped wasteland of New Zealand's Mount Ruapehu stood a mysteriously sunny oasis known to its inhabitants as Paradise Valley. Despite being sunken into the depths of the harshly cold mountain, this Polynesian valley stayed as warm as any tropical paradise due to its special Care Bear inhabitants.

Today was a very exciting day for everyone in the valley, particularly for the twin daughters of Good Luck Bear and Polite Panda. The twin girl cubs, Fortune and Charm, were in need of their immunizations in Care-A-Lot, and their friends in Care-A-Lot had recently spent the past month working on improvements to the Rainbow Rescue Beam so that the Luck Family would not have to pass through the harsh surroundings that kept the valley safe and hidden.

Good Luck and Polite, along with Polite's brother, Perfect Panda, all stood near the village's only communicator, waiting for any word on when two other members of the Care Bear Family would be coming down to make sure the valley did not freeze over while the Luck Family was in Care-A-Lot getting baby shots. The entire village gathered around the hut where the communicator stood, waiting for any sign of the visitor's arrival. "This is Good Luck Bear to Bright Heart Raccoon," Good Luck Bear said into a microphone. "Come in Bright Heart. We're all ready when you are. Over?"

On the other end of the transmission, Bright Heart Raccoon stood by with Lotsa Heart Elephant and Proud Heart Cat. "Bright Heart to Good Luck," Bright Heart said into his microphone. "We'll be sending down the fillers soon. Over."

Hugs, Tugs, and Cozy Heart had made it to the Hall of Hearts just in time to see all the excitement. Several others were there, many of which had brought dishes of food or other gifts to welcome their visitors. There was even a banner hanging in the Hall of Hearts saying "Welcome Good Luck, Polite, Fortune, and Charm!" "Oh goodie, goodie gosh!" Hugs exclaimed. "We made it in time! We get to see Fortune and Charm come visit!"

Seeing her excited grandchildren from across the hall, Grams Bear went up to them to welcome them. "Are you excited to see your new friends, my little darlings?" she said to the cubs. "We sure are," Hugs exclaimed, giving the old bear a big hug. Taking the opportunity to tug at Grams Bear's shawl, Tugs asked her, "Grams Bear, what's Bright Heart and Grumpy doing?" "Yeah Grams," Hugs added, "and what are Lotsa Heart and Proud Heart doing up under the Rainbow Rescue Beam?"

Grams smiled at the eager cubs. "You see my little darlings," she began, "Lotsa Heart and Proud Heart are going to go down the Paradise Valley to watch after it while Good Luck and Polite are here. They are going to stand in as temporary replacements so that the Valley won't freeze over."

The two cubs nodded in understanding. "So, Proud Heart and Lotsa Heart are leaving?" Hugs asked. Grams nodded to her granddaughter. "Only for a few days," she explained. "When Good Luck and Polite are ready to go home, Proud Heart and Lotsa Heart will be able to come back here."

Tug's eyes lit up with possibility. "Grams?" he asked as sweetly and innocently as possible. "Can we go with Proud Heart and Lotsa Heart?" "Yeah!" Hugs added enthusiastically. "Can we? Can we? Can we? Pleeeeeeeease?"

The two cubs put on their cutest begging faces, hoping to get the answer they wanted out of Grams. The old bear thought hard about the request. She herself was starting to come to terms with her empty nest syndrome from when the cubs would leave her for long periods of time. She remembered that she did always have friends in Care-A-Lot to help her with her feelings, and a large semi-truck that she and Swift Heart Rabbit built to help keep her mind occupied. She also remembered Tender Heart's earlier request that their guests stay in her house during their visit, so she knew she wouldn't be lonely while the cubs were gone. "I guess it's alright," she finally said, much to the cubs delight. "We'll have to talk to Bright Heart, Grumpy, and everyone else in Paradise Valley to get the final answer though." The two cubs cheered and danced around in a circle with their paws linked together.

Proud Heart Cat and Lotsa Heart Elephant stood on the pedestal underneath the newly revised Rainbow Rescue Beam, ready to be transported down to the valley as stand ins while Good Luck and Polite came with their daughters for shots. "This was a purrrr-fect idea Bright Heart," Proud Heart said. "This will give Good Luck and Polite a great chance to visit for a little vacation while not stressing out over the valley."

From underneath the Rainbow Rescue Beam's console, Grumpy Bear could be heard tinkering away. "Yeah Proud Heart, real perfect idea," he grumbled. "If it's so perfect, than why am I the one doing all the work around here?" "Because you're so purrrr-fect at fixing things around here," the quick witted cat replied, smiling to herself. "Game set and matched my handy little friend." Grumpy wiggled his way out from under the console. "Yeah, yeah," he mumbled as he reached for his tool box.

"Here ya go, Grumpy," said the cheerful voice of Tugs. Taken aback a bit, Grumpy thanked the little cub for the help. "No problem," Tugs said as Grumpy wheeled back under the control console. "By the way, Grumpy, can Hugs and I go too?"

Shocked by the question, Grumpy sat strait up without even thinking. In doing so, he ended up getting a face full of wires. "What do you mean, 'go too'?" he exclaimed as he made his way out of the controls. Tugs looked as innocent as he could. "Hugs and I just wanna go, that's all," he said as he and Hugs hung their heads innocently.

Lotsa Heart looked at the sad looking cubs. "Awwwww," he said, looking tenderly at Grumpy. "I wouldn't mind looking after the cubs for a while, and that's the truth." Proud Heart nodded in agreement. "I think it might be good for them to come along," she added. "After all, they'll be going on Caring Missions soon anyway, so this would be a good opportunity for them to get used to the idea of spending time away from Care-A-Lot."

Everyone looked at Bright Heart, who stood scratching his head in thought. "I don't know," he said. "It might be dangerous. I'd better check with Paradise Valley to see if it's okay." The cubs looked eagerly at each other as Bright Heart radioed the valley. Everyone couldn't help standing on their toes in anticipation as they awaited the answer from the valley. After a minute of eager waiting, Good Luck Bear's voice could be heard through the radio box saying, "Good Luck to Bright Heart, we'll allow two extras, over."

The Hall of Hearts erupted in joy at the response. Hugs and Tugs gave Proud Heart and Lotsa Heart a big hug as they awaited their departure. "Okay, okay," Proud Heart said as she tried to calm the cubs down. "Let's get this thing started. Bright Heart, are you still getting a clear signal from Paradise Valley?" "Check and double check," Bright Heart said, giving the kitty a big thumbs up. "Firing up right now!"

Everyone waved their good-byes to the party on the platform. Hugs and Tugs blew kisses to Grams Bear, thanking her for letting them go. "They'll have tooth brushes and everything they need in Paradise Valley, won't they?" Grams asked Bright Heart as he pushed a few buttons. "I'm sure they'll have everything they need," Bright Heart reassured her. "If anything, we can send them down things via the Rainbow Rescue Beam if they absolutely need something."

In a flash of light, Proud Heart, Lotsa Heart, Hugs, and Tugs had disappeared into a colorful rainbow ray.

*****

Having successfully left the ground, flight 589 out of Logan International Airport had finally stabilized. Dr. Winchester was doing much better as well, and was sitting back as comfortably as he possibly could with his glass of ginger ale.

It was partly cloudy outside the airplane, making the sight outside the tiny plane windows look lovely. Dr. Winchester looked out the window, admiring the beauty of the fluffy white clouds. The old doctor took a satisfied sip of his ginger ale as he stared out the window, admiring the scenery. Before long, he noticed an unusually colorful thing coming out of no where. He continued to watch what looked like a rainbow whiz around the sky until it went out of his sight. "Stewardess!" he shouted in disbelief. "Yes sir," the stewardess replied, trying to force sweetness into her tone of voice. "Tell me," Dr. Winchester said, looking a bit spooked, "is there something in this ginger ale?"

The stewardess looked confused. "What do you mean by 'something' sir?" she asked. Dr. Winchester held the glass of ginger ale up to eye level, examining it closely. "Well, it appears that I saw something rather, oh I don't know, peculiar outside of the plane window and I thought that perhaps this drink had been spiked or something," he explained. "Would you be so kind as to bring me another one?" "Certainly sir," the stewardess said, rolling her eyes as she picked up the old man's drink, feeling tempted to spike the next drink she brought to him. "Anything else I can do for you sir?" "In fact there is," Dr. Winchester replied. "A few more pillows would be delightful."

The stewardess agreed to fetch the pillows for her obnoxious passenger. "Thank goodness this plane lands in an hour," she said to herself as she stuffed the extra pillows under her arm. "I don't know how much more of this guy I can take!"

*****

The rainbow whizzed around the skies, passing over the snow capped mountains of Mount Ruapehu before reaching its final destination. Upon noticing the colorful spectacle, Pr. Cold Heart grabbed a set of binoculars to see where it would land. "No. It can't be!" he said as he watched the rainbow head toward a warm looking part of the mountain. "How is this possible?!?"

Frostbite looked dumbly at his boss. "Duh, what's going on boss?" he asked. Cold Heart shot his assistant an icy look. "That rainbow is heading right for a tropical spot, and inside of it are some Care Bears!" he bellowed. "We've got to get down there and investigate!"

Auntie Freeze grabbed the binoculars out of Cold Heart's hands. "You'd better get that ice contraption done with before you go sight seeing," she said as she stared down at what was going on at the end of the rainbow. Cold Heart stroked his long chin as he thought about what Auntie Freeze suggested. "Brilliant idea Auntie," he said. "Frostbite and I will be very busy here working on the machine, but you've got some extra free time. Why don't you go down and investigate for me?"

Auntie Freeze was appalled by the idea. "ME?!?" she exclaimed. Cold Heart smiled in an uncharacteristic manner. "Of course. Who else could better do it than you? After all, I'm sure you could use a vacation from all this construction."

Auntie Freeze breathed a long, defeated sigh. "Well," she said, "at least it'll get me away from you two blundering blocks of ice." Cold Heart smiled happily at the thought of getting rid of Auntie Freeze for a while. "Excellent," he said. "Look inside the zeppelin. You should see a set of walkie talkies. Grab one and contact me as soon as you get there. There are also a few snow mobiles in the corner under a sheet. Take one, and be sure to get it back safely." Auntie Freeze nodded meanly. "Alright," she said as she stepped into the zeppelin, "but if anything happens to me you'll be in for a world of hurt!"

Chapter 4: Are We There Yet?

"Well, I'm glad that all the filing is done for today," Teacher Bear said as she helped Soon Lee close the last drawer. "I had no idea how much paperwork went through this office. You've really got your work cut out for you." "Yes I do," Soon Lee said as she locked the last drawer. "So much for this paperless society that we're supposed to be switching to." The old bear yawned as she looked at her watch. "Well, give it some time Soon Lee. It's only 1989, and from what I've read, computers will be doing some pretty amazing things in a couple of years," Teacher Bear said as she stepped down from one of the office chairs. Soon Lee nodded as she turned off her Dos system computer. "I hate to be a skeptic little friend," she said, "but I'll believe it when I see it." Teacher Bear smiled and nodded as the two women left the desk. "You could be right," she said as they went down the hallway toward the elevator so that she could fetch the cubs in the playroom on the third floor. "Then again, if something really does come of the computer, I bet our generation will have a hard time grasping it." "Yeah, but I bet your kids will pick up on it like second nature," Soon Lee said as they got into the elevator. "You'd be amazed what some of these kids are doing with machines these days. It's like they're living in some science fiction world."

The two ladies stopped off at the little playroom, happy to see not only the cubs, but a familiar face. "Well hello Nurse Jones," Teacher Bear said as she picked up Passive Heart, her little blue badger cub. "It looks like the playroom has become a popular spot to be this evening."

Nurse Jones sat up happily, holding onto the pink little skunk, Pretty Heart. "Well hello yourself, Miss Mulcahey," Nurse Jones smiled as she addressed Teacher Bear. "I hope you don't mind me popping in and out by here all day, but it's so hard to not stop by and check up on these little angels you have here. They are just the best!" "I'm sure they've enjoyed your visits too," Teacher Bear said as she gave Passive Heart a little snuggle before placing him in the baby carriage. "It's quite a relief knowing that they have you and the others to look after them."

Nurse Jones gave little Pretty Heart a kiss on the forehead before placing her in the baby carriage. "I guess you all will be taking off soon then," she asked. "I'm afraid so," Teacher Bear explained. "I have to cram for an upcoming test and we'd like to leave a little bit early to avoid driving in the dark. You know how dark these roads get at night." "I sure do!" Nurse Jones replied. "Just the other night someone nearly side swiped me on my way home. Someone ought to get better night lighting around these parts rather than a few dim street lights here and there. Ah well, I guess that's what you get for living in a small town like this one."

As the two women chattered away, Klinger popped his head in the door. "Ah, there you are!" he said, sneaking behind his wife to give her a quick kiss on the cheek. "It looks like this is the popular spot to be, eh girls? Say, you sure you two wanna leave so soon? You'll be missing out on meeting Dr. Winchester, the guy Father Mulcahey and me served in the army with."

Teacher Bear smiled despite herself. "Oh, that's right!" she exclaimed. "He is coming in this evening. Well, perhaps I can stay for a little while longer. Soon Lee, do you remember what time Dr. Silverberg said he would be coming in?" Soon Lee took a quick look at her watch. "Looks like he'll be here within the hour," she explained. "It's up to you whether you want to stick around that long or not."

Before Teacher Bear could make up her mind, another familiar face could be seen peeking around the door. "This must be the popular place to be for the evening," Father Mulcahey said as he entered the room. "Fanci!!!" piped in Charity Heart, the little red fox cub, at the sight of one of her all time favorite people. Father Mulcahey happily picked the cub up from the floor, giving her a little hug and a kiss on the forehead. "I do hope you don't mind Bluebelle," he began, "but I won't be able to help you study much this evening. You see, an old war friend of mine is due to arrive in few hours and I'd like to welcome him in." "I understand completely," Teacher Bear said. "If it's alright with you, I'd like to welcome him as well before the Klingers and I head home." Father Mulcahey smiled happily. "Why, that would be wonderful," Father Mulcahey smiled. "Wow-wow-fu," Charity Heart chimed in, trying to imitate her dear old friend. "Well, I think Charity Heart took the words right out of my mouth," Teacher Bear smiled, looking lovingly at the cute little fox cub. "I won't be able to stay long, but I'll stay as long as I can."

*****

The adjustments to the Rainbow Rescue beam were successful, resulting in a good landing for replacements in Paradise Valley. "Welcome to Paradise!" Perfect Panda said as his guests materialized before him. "It's so good to see you. Do tell me, is there anything I can get you?"

The four travelers shook their heads in appreciation. "Thanks all the same," Proud Heart said. "Finally being able to see this place after hearing so much about it for so long is really a treat in and of itself. I'd love a tour later if you don't mind." "It would be an honor to show you around," Perfect said, blushing a bit from the compliment Proud Heart had given him. "For the moment, we must get my family off the ground."

After saying their "how do you do's" to their temporary replacements, Good Luck and Polite stood in position for their departure, each one holding onto one of their children. Just as Good Luck was about to speak into his end of the communicator, he noticed a large, cheerful elderly woman coming toward them. "Please my lucky ones!" she said in an old yet good natured voice. "Please, allow me to wish you a safe travel." Polite and Good Luck hugged the old lady happily as she approached them.

Lotsa Heart Elephant was fascinated by the look of the old woman. She was nearly three times his size, yet she seemed to be as gentle and loving as any Care Bear. The old woman amazed him, but then again, it did not take much to amaze Lotsa Heart. In his amazement, he sat down on a log to further observe the woman. As he did so, he sat down on something that he clearly should not have. "YEEEOUCH!" he bellowed, grabbing his behind in pain. "Oh my. You poor little booboo," the old lady said, coming to Lotsa Heart's attention. "Have you hurt yourself? Let me see, yes?"

Lotsa Heart smiled sheepishly at the old lady's gentle touch on this hurting butt. "I sat on something and hurt my backside, and that's the truth," Lotsa Heart said, sheepishly showing the old woman his injury. "Oh my. There is a thorn in your rump little friend," the old woman said, examining the mild injury. "Here, I have just the thing. Stand still and let me tend to you."

The little elephant could feel the old lady removing the thorn and putting a salve on the injury. "Wow!" Lotsa Heart exclaimed as the pain in his backside quickly went away. "How'd you do all that?" "There are many things that I know young one," she replied, smiling at the excited little pink elephant. "After our friends have departed, I would be delighted to show you were I got the salve I used to heal you." Lotsa Heart let out a trade mark bellow from his trunk to show how very excited he was by the prospect of the personal guided tour. "That'd be great Miss, uh, what should I call you?" "My name is Tantamallama, but you may call me Big Mama Tantan. All the family that is this village refers to me as this and you as my new family are no different."

The Luck Family smiled at the newfound friendship between the valley elder and the pink elephant. "I hope you have fun Lotsa Heart," Good Luck said with a wink. "She'll talk your ear off!" "Yes, but I can put it back on just as easily," Big Mama Tantan replied with a good natured laugh.

The village waved their goodbyes after Good Luck said his "all clear" into his end of the communication device. Before long, Good Luck Bear, Polite Panda, Fortune Panda Bear, and Charm Panda Bear were engulfed in a beam of color before they disappeared in a flash of light.

*****

A Greyhound bus came to a screeching halt in front of General Pershing's Veteran's Hospital. "Seat 7A, this is your stop!" the bus driver said, turning to Dr. Winchester with a mixture of aggravation and relief. Dr. Winchester had been getting on everyone's nerves since he had been picked up from the airport.

Tired from his trek, Dr. Winchester made his way off the bus with several pairs of disgruntled eyes staring at him. "Pardon me my good man," Dr. Winchester said to the bus driver. "What! What is it now!" the driver hollered. "My bags," Dr. Winchester replied calmly. "They are in the belly of this bulbuls vehicle and I would like them retrieved." The driver grumbled as he stood up. "After you, your lordship," the he said, bowing sarcastically. "As it should be," Dr. Winchester responded with his own touch of sarcasm.

The driver opened up the doors to the luggage holder, peering inside at the sea of baggage. "What's yours?" he asked, pointing to all the bags. Dr. Winchester looked unamused at the driver. "The monogrammed set with the letters CWE on them. Don't you recognize quality?" he said arrogantly. The driver nodded angrily, tossing the monogrammed suitcases onto the concrete. "Easy! Easy on that!" Dr. Winchester exclaimed, rushing over to his precious cargo. "These are genuine leather! Would you mind not scuffing them up!" "If it's so important you can drag your crap off yourself!" the driver replied, flushed with frustration. Dr. Winchester straitened himself up so that he could stare down the driver. "I am an old man, where as you are in the peek of physical condition," Dr. Winchester bickered back. "Now if you do not want me to call the complaint number on the back of this blundering bus than I would suggest doing your job properly!" The driver grumbled a bit before going back to his duties.

As soon as the driver was finished with unloading the arrogant doctor's luggage, he got back on the bus. The bus door closed sharply as the driver sat back in his driver's seat. Dr. Winchester shot the bus driver a dirty look as he stepped away from the large vehicle for fear of being run over. Several of the passengers took the dirty look the wrong way, thinking that it was directed at them. Some responded with a wide variety of responses, from rude faces to even ruder gestures. "Obscene bumpkins!" Dr. Winchester said as he turned his back to the passengers as the bus rolled away.

Within the doorway of the hospital stood a familiar face. "Dr. Winchester!" came the familiar and very welcome voice of Father Mulcahey. "Father Mulcahey? Is that you?" Dr. Winchester said, both confused and happily at the sight of his old war companion. "What on earth are you doing in such a run down little suburb?"

Knowing that comments like this were just Dr. Winchester's way of expressing himself, Father Mulcahey shook hands with his old war companion. "It's been years since I've seen you," Father Mulcahey said happily. "I've been stationed here since after the war. The late Colonel Potter, God rest him, tipped me in on this little job. This used to be a war veteran's hospital before it was converted to a community hospital. I've been Chaplin and priest here ever since, and it's a very wonderful place. The people here are very kind." "Well, that is something," Winchester said, picking up one of his bags. "As much as it pains me to say so in such a place, it is very good to see you and to know that there is at least someone familiar that I can associate with." "Oh, you won't be alone here," Father Mulcahey smiled. "Max Klinger and his wife, Soon Lee, work here as well. They're inside waiting to see you, and I know the hospital staff would be delighted to handle your bags. Ah, here comes Nurse Bellman now with a cart."

Nurse Bellman gave a friendly smile as she brought the cart out to the curb. "I've heard a lot about you, Dr. Winchester," she said, holding out her hand to welcome him. "I'll be working with you and the interns over the next couple of weeks, and I hope we can become good friends before this is over." Dr. Winchester smiled meekly at the nurse. "Well, I'm hoping that you can make this as quick and painless as possible," he replied, returning her hand shake weakly. "Now if you do not mind… my baggage."

Clearing his throat uncomfortably, Father Mulcahey tried to keep the conversation rolling. "It'll be like old times," he said, "only we're much older now, and we're not in a war zone, oh and there isn't the high amount of alcohol consumption. Rest assured though, we do have the mosquitoes like they have in Korea." Dr. Winchester did not find the comment amusing, leaving Father Mulcahey to giggle alone. "Strange as it may seem," Dr. Winchester said uncomfortably, "that does not improve my mood."

Seeing that his little joke went over like a lead balloon, Father Mulcahey tried again. "Why don't you come inside," the old Chaplin persisted. "There are several people wanting to meet you, including some relations of mine. Nurse Bellman, can you manage on your own?" "I'll be fine, thank you," she smiled. "I'll see you inside shortly. Oh, and you might want to mention the, um," she gestured, indicating shortness and colored fur as gently as she could, "before you get inside. They can be a bit of a shock if you don't know already." "Oh, yes of course," Father Mulcahey responded, not getting the concept of the gestures. "There is a shortage of chairs in the lobby, but don't worry, we can find you one if you need it."

Chapter 5: What in the World?

After an hour of traipsing through the snow on an oddly shaped snow mobile, Auntie Freeze made it to her destination. She found it odd that the snow seemed to suddenly stop at the edge of a lush, tropical forest.

Shedding her heavy coat, Auntie Freeze walked slowly into the warmth. "Auntie Freeze to Cold Heart. Do you hear me?" she said harshly into her walkie talkie. She stood for a second waiting to hear back from Cold Heart, but got nothing. "Are your ears frozen! Answer me!!!" she shouted into the walkie talkie, hoping to get a response.

A few seconds later, Frostbite's voice could be heard through the walkie talkie. "Duh, hiya Auntie," he said dumbly. "You make it there okay Auntie? What's it like? I'm glad to hear you're not dead. Cold Heart said he thought you were gonna be dead before you got there, and I made a bet with him that you'd make it. He owes me some ice cream now because I said you'd make it okay." Auntie Freeze rolled her eyes as her nephew continued to jabber into the walkie talkie. "Let me speak to Cold Heart," she said as calmly as she could. "Duh, okay," Frostbite replied.

Auntie Freeze could hear her nephew's heavy footsteps as he approached Cold Heart, the noise of the ice machine buzzing in the background. She could hear Frostbite shouting to Cold Heart before she could hear the ice machine shutting off. "This is Professor Cold Heart speaking," he said proudly. "I hear from your nephew that you made it down safely. That's wonderful to hear my dear." Auntie Freeze winced at the sugary sweetness in Cold Heart's voice. "Yes, I hear you owe my nephew ice cream now. Nice to know my life is worth a few scoops of vanilla," she replied angrily.

She could hear Cold Heart sounding uncomfortable on the other end of the walkie talkie. "My dear Auntie," Cold Heart said, trying desperately to change the subject, "we meant no harm. After all, the greatest bet is knowing that you are safe and sound."

Before she could respond to Cold Heart's careless remarks, she started hearing some commotion behind her. "Shut up for a second," she said into the walkie talkie. Cold Heart took offense to the comment, responding with, "Well, no need to be rude about it." "No, I mean it. I can hear something," she replied. "I'll contact you later. I've got to check this out." Before Cold Heart could get in a word edgewise, Auntie Freeze had shut off her walkie talkie to investigate the noises she heard.

From behind a lush overgrowth, the sound of people walking around and chatting happily could be heard. Taking out Cold Heart's binoculars, Auntie Freeze began looking around for something that could help her find what she was looking for.

Before she knew it, she could see a panda, a cat, and two baby bears getting into a long canoe with what looked like one of the locals. "Bingo!" she said, taking the binoculars away from her eyes. "I've got to get close to that river and see what's going on."

Perfect Panda and the local villager paddled the long canoe around while their guests enjoyed the scenery. "It's beautiful!" Proud Heart exclaimed as Perfect and the villager ushered her around in the canoe. "I've never seen anything like it anywhere! Even the wild flowers on the banks are starting to put my garden in the Forest of Feelings to shame." Perfect smiled broadly at the compliment as he continued to row the canoe. "Here in the valley, we take pride in our plants," he explained. "In fact, the plants are honored with local songs and dance." The cubs giggled at the idea of singing and dancing to plant life. "You sing and dance for the plants?" Hugs giggled. Perfect nodded proudly. "Of course we do, for don't you see," he explained. "Like people, a seed needs encouragement to grow into a tree."

The cubs tried hard to understand what Perfect said, but for the life of them they just couldn't. Proud Heart pat the cubs on the head as she tried to help with the explanation. "You mean the trees breath in what we breathe out, right Perfect?" Proud Heart asked, trying to sound like she understood what Perfect was talking about. "Yes that is true, but that's not quite what it's about," Perfect said thoughtfully. "We have an old story, a poem if you will, about how a soul can grow happy and how a soul can grow ill. Like a child, a plant responds to how it is treated. It can be treated well, or be yelled at and defeated. A child who is told many things that are good grows up to know that he is valued, loved, and with worth. A child who is told they are worthless and bad grows up to feel like they have little place on this earth. Our village sings and dances love to the plants and trees. This way they can grow with love and with ease."

Proud Heart was speechless. "I never would have thought of it that way," she finally said, a thoughtful look on her face. "No wonder this place is so lovely." "Yeah," Hugs added in. "Maybe later, you can teach us some plant songs." Tugs wrinkled his nose at the prospect of singing plant songs. "Plant songs sound too girly for me," he said. "I'd rather learn plant dances instead."

The rower laughed heartily as he and Perfect rowed the canoe around a bend. "Perfect is right about the songs and dances children," said the rower. "Perhaps you and Miss Proud would like to learn them later. After all, it is difficult to dance without singing, and it is lonely to sing without dancing. It is also said that the sweeter and more harmonious you are to a flower, the sweeter it smells as it grows. My family and I have tended to this grove of wild flower trees as our tribute to our ancestors, and these flowers always smell of their love." Proud Heart blushed at the formalities of the rower. "Oh, no need to be so formal," Proud Heart said as she sniffed at the air. "You can just call me Proud Heart, Mr., um, what should I call you?" The rower smiled broadly. "You may call me Bunandi," he said as he picked a flower for her from wild flower tree. "It would please my ancestors and I if you would accept a flower from us and let us welcome you to our family of the heart."

Proud Heart blushed humbly as she accepted the flower, sniffing its aroma. "You're right about the smell, Bunandi," she said as she admired the flower's fragrance. "There's something about knowing how much it means that makes it smell that much better." Bunandi smiled broadly as he watched the cat enjoy the flower's scent. "Thank you," he said, smiling humbly. "My wife loved the smell of the flowers just as you are now. It makes me happy to know that her love of sweet smells lives on in new friends, even if she is no longer with us to enjoy their scent."

Proud Heart slowly took the flower away from her nose, feeling badly about what she heard. "I'm sorry to hear about your wife," she said, feeling a genuine sadness for the rower's late wife. Bunandi gave Proud Heart a reassuring nod, showing his appreciation for her sympathy. "Do not feel sad my friend," he said. "Malla gave me many great joys that still live on. Together we brought two wonderful children into the world, and those children live happily in the valley. A life of simple joys is anything a mother would want for her children, and Malla gave her life for them in traveling here so that they may live in peace."

Perfect breathed in the scent of the flowers that hung above him, thinking of the joys that he and his sister were able to share with the villagers after overcoming their shyness. Just as he began to enjoy the flower's scent, his face curled up in to an unpleasant smirk. "Good stars on high! What is that sour smell!" he said, holding his nose. "Whatever it is, it is certainly not well!"

Bunandi, Proud Heart, and the cubs sniffed at the air themselves. "That is not of my ancestors!" Bunandi said as the smell knocked him off his feet, causing him to accidentally tip the canoe over. Proud Heart hissed angrily as she emerged from the water. "What is that?!?" she said as she and her friends swam to shore.

In a nearby hut, the sounds of commotion could be heard. "Send it outside, little booboo!" came the booming voice of Big Mama Tantan. "I'm trying, and that's the truth!" Lotsa Heart responded, opening the door to the hut and carrying out a large wooden bowl. It was clear from the watered eyes and scrunched up trunk on Lotsa Heart's face that whatever was in the bowl was the culprit of the terrible smell.

"Lotsa Heart!!!" Proud Heart shouted from the shore. "What are you doing?!? You've ruined a perfectly wonderful moment!" Not paying attention to what she was saying, Lotsa Heart went barreling toward the familiar voice. "I gotta get rid of this! It smells horrible, and that's the truth!" Lotsa Heart shouted as he ran toward the shore. "LOOK OUT!!!" everyone shouted as the pink elephant tripped on a tree root. "YEEEEOUCH!" Lotsa Heart shouted as he stubbed his toe, sending the bowl of ill smells up into the air. "Back in the water!" Perfect shouted, not even bothering to rhyme as he dunked himself back in the water for his own protection.

From her hiding place behind a large plant, Auntie Freeze wrinkled up her nose at the smell. "What kind of witch craft are they up to here?" she asked herself, grabbing a handkerchief from her pocket to cover her offended nose.

When Perfect emerged again, he noticed that a majority of the stuff in the bowl landed on both Proud Heart and a venus fly trap. The plant itself seemed to sniff at the stuff, coughing and sputtering its many snappers as though it could not stand the smelly concoction. "Is everyone alright?" Big Mama Tantan asked as she came out of the hut, holding another bowl with a white powder in it. Lotsa Heart nodded and smiled appreciatively at Big Mama Tantan's concern. "I stubbed my toe and dropped the pain salve we were making, and I don't think that plant there likes it one bit," Lotsa Heart said, smiling sheepishly. "The rest landed on me," Proud Heart replied, holding her nose and looking less than impressed. Everyone else seemed to get a giggle out of Proud Heart's facial expression, though they understood full well why she looked the way that she did about being covered in the stink.

Big Mama Tantan set herself down by the goop covered plant. "All will be well my friends," Big Mama Tantan said, smiling in a grandmotherly fashion as she helped Lotsa Heart back on his feet. "Next time you will know to remove the seeds better from the little brown peppers before crushing them into the ingredients my little booboo. I made the same mistake when I first tried to make the salve myself, and sometimes I still make that mistake. That is why I keep a bowl of neutral salts near me in my hut. This will help the smell go away."

Taking a handful of the white powdery salt, Big Mama Tantan gently placed it on the goop on Proud Heart's head and on the goop that covered the fly plant. As she did so, she began to sing a song to the plant in a language that Proud Heart did not understand. "What's she saying Perfect?" the tan cat whispered, feeling as though if she spoke too loudly she would disturb the old woman. "She is singing goodness back into the plant. She is encouraging healing with her Samoan chant," the panda explained. "The plant experienced a hardship today, and the encouragement will heal it inside in someway. Just like when a child falls and gets hurt, the encouraging song will help the plant's spirits perk."

Auntie Freeze leaned in to watch the old woman work. She was amazed to see that the plant was physically beginning to look like it was feeling much better. "How on earth?" she said in disbelief.

The little plant seemed to calm itself down, looking much more relaxed as Big Mama Tantan scooped the no longer smelly goop back into its bowl. Lotsa Heart knelt down to help with the cleaning process. "That was amazing! Can you teach me how to do that?" he said as he put a pawful of goop into the bowl. Big Mama Tantan smiled happily at her eager friend. "You have much to learn little booboo," she said. "I would love to teach you and your wet friends all that you would like to learn. In the mean time little kitty, we need to get you cleaned up. You no longer smell of the mistake, but that does not mean that it is not all over you." Proud Heart smiled in spite of herself. "So long as you don't teach me how to make bad smells, I'd be happy to learn something new," she said jokingly. Bunandi laughed along with his new friend. "Yes, I do not know if my ancestors can take anymore foul smells anytime soon," he added.

As the friends laughed together, Auntie Freeze kept a close watch over them. "I'd better get a closer look at what that large old woman is doing," she said, getting up from her uncomfortable position behind the big plant.

*****

The automatic doors of General Pershing's Hospital opened up, revealing a bland but practical interior. Father Mulcahey walked in first in order to better welcome his old friend. "I really think you'll like it here. The people here are wonderful to work with," Father Mulcahey said as he escorted Dr. Winchester inside the hospital. "That's what they said about Korea," Dr. Winchester replied mundanely as we walked through the automatic door.

As soon as the door closed, Dr. Winchester noticed a large sign made out of pieces of scratch paper taped to the receptionist's desk. Looking more closely, he noticed that the sign said "Welcome to River Bend Dr. Winchester" written in several different colors of crayon. Before Dr. Winchester could take in the poorly designed sign, several people popped up from behind the desk, all shouting "surprise." Dr. Winchester gave a meek, sarcastic little smile at the little gesture as people came from behind the desk to greet him.

"Well if it ain't old blue blood himself!" came the all too familiar voice of Max Klinger. "Hello... Klinger," Dr. Winchester said in spite of himself, shaking hands with his old war companion. "It's been years!" Klinger continued enthusiastically, not noticing Dr. Winchester's rather uncomfortable look. "How they treating you in Bean Town? Hey, you remember my wife, Soon Lee. Wait, what am I saying. Of course you remember her. You were at our little wedding in Korea!"

As Dr. Winchester shook hands unenthusiastically with Soon Lee, something colorful caught his eye. Coming around the receptionist's desk was a carriage full of colorful animal creatures being pushed by a plump little blue bear wearing a flowered dress and a pair of glasses. Dr. Winchester stared in disbelief as the bear looked enthusiastically up at him. "Klinger..." Dr. Winchester said, rubbing his eyes as though by doing so the bear he saw would disappear. "Is this some sort of trick or something?" "What?" Klinger replied, rather unaware. "This! You blundering baboon!" the old doctor replied, pointing right at Teacher Bear. "Is this some sort of joke? Are you all trying to haze the new guy here? Well, you silly little bumpkins, the joke is over. Where is the zipper on this little costume?"

Noticing a zipper on the back of the bear's dress, Dr. Winchester helped himself to it. "Excuse me!!!" Teacher Bear shouted as Dr. Winchester unzipped the back of her dress, exposing the back of her underwear to the present staff. "I have never seen such disrespectful behavior in all my life! Do you always go around unzipping ladies dresses as a way to say hello?" "Pardon me… madam!" Dr. Winchester replied, trying to regain his dignity in introduction. "How on earth was I supposed to know that you were, well, you in there and not just some performer in a suit?"

Everyone stood back a bit as the old man and the blue bear began to argue. "Excuse me," Father Mulcahey said politely as he came between his two friends. "Dr. Winchester, this is Bluebelle. She's sort of a cousin on my late dog's side."

Dr. Winchester began to chuckle slightly. "What's so funny?" Teacher Bear asked skeptically. "The whole situation!" Dr. Winchester replied. "First I come in here, greeted by a pack of half crazed country folk. Then I meet a walking, talking, breathing stuffed animal only to unintentionally assault her, then I come to find that she is related to my old friend's deceased pet! This is ludicrous! How on earth do I end up in the most insane places all in the name of medicine?" The old doctor threw his head back, laughing. "I've got to get out of here? Where is your Dr. Silverberg?" Dr. Winchester asked, half crazed and half sarcastically.

Dr. Silverberg looked less than impressed at Dr. Winchester's display of unprofessional behavior. "I don't know where a Dr. Silverberg might be," he responded rather dully. "Perhaps if you look at the name on my white doctor's coat you'll notice who I am. Or perhaps you were expecting to read it off of a pair of overalls. I am, after all, a half crazed country folk!" Dr. Winchester shrunk back a bit at the tone in Dr. Silverberg's voice. "Ah, doctor, so good to see you. Perhaps you and I could arrange a heart to heart, and you could get me the hell out of here."

As the two doctors prattled on, Thorough Heart stood up in the carriage to watch the commotion. He began to point at the doctor, gurgling and tugging at Dr. Winchester's nearby jacket. "What on earth?" Dr. Winchester said, turning around to see what it was that was pulling at his jacket. Looking down into the carriage, he noticed the little orange weasel cub staring curiously back at him. "Hello…" Dr. Winchester said drolly, trying to pry Thorough Heart's little paws off of the end of his jacket. The persistent little cub refused to let go, tugging with all his might on the jacket end. The cub's siblings began to join in on the fun, much to Dr. Winchester's dismay. "What are they doing!" Dr. Winchester shouted as he removed his jacket so that he could pull on it easier. "I think they want to find out if you're really you in there and not just some performer in a suit," Teacher Bear smiled as she went over to help pry the cubs off of Dr. Winchester's jacket. "Come on now my dear ones. Leave Dr. Winchester's clothes alone."

Despite the extra help, the sound of cloth ripping could be heard. "Now look what you've done you little twit!" Dr. Winchester exclaimed at Thorough Heart, who had made a generous tear in the jacket's pocket. "Twit!" Thorough Heart repeated, pointing happily at Dr. Winchester. "Twit! Twit! Twit! Twit!!!"

Teacher Bear looked unbelievably at Dr. Winchester. "Well!" she said, handing whatever part she had of the jacket to the old doctor. "Do you have any other choice words you'd like to teach my children?" "I'm sure I could think of a few," he said, looking unhappily at Thorough Heart in the corner of his eye. "Twit!" Thorough Heart added in cheerfully, pointing at the old doctor and giggling.

The staff slowly filed away from the scene of welcome, several of them less than impressed with the new temporary addition to the hospital. "Well, this has been interesting," Father Mulcahey said, hoping to break the tension in the lobby. "I'm sure you are very tired from your travels, Dr. Winchester. Why don't we get you settled. Dr. Silverberg, where will Dr. Winchester be staying during his time with us?" "He'll be staying at the Shultz Bed and Breakfast a few blocks down the road. I hope he likes it, because George and Wilma Shultz have recently updated the place," the head doctor replied, looking distastefully at the doctor he had had the displeasure of welcoming to his staff. Dr. Winchester returned the look he received from Dr. Silverberg. "Wonderful! Judging by the state of this little suburb this inn must be the nicest place in town, complete with a cement pond, just like the movie stars have," Dr. Winchester replied sarcastically, seeing frustration cringe up on Dr. Silverberg's brow. "And how on earth do you expect me to get to this lovely homegrown establishment? I have no vehicle." Dr. Silverberg was getting really frustrated with his new addition. "Call a cab!" he responded, getting rather tired of the old man already.

"Hey now doc," Klinger interrupted. "No need to get yourself all bent outta shape. Why don't me and Soon Lee take him in for a while." "Max!" Soon Lee said sternly. "What have I told you about freeloaders!" "He's not a freeloader honey," Klinger smiled. "Me and Dr. Winchester go way back. Come on. Just a little while. We'll be saving the hospital some money and helping out an old friend." Soon Lee rolled her eyes. "I swear, if I find another chicken bone in my vents than this is the last visitor we have staying in my house!"

Chapter 6: Here We Are

Big Mama Tantan's hut was always the popular spot for the evening, mostly because she lived so close to the big fire pit. The whole village swarmed around the hut to enjoy their evening meal and each other's company in front of a raging fire. Proud Heart had just finished bathing herself with a soap that Big Mama Tantan had made, and was admiring how soft and nicely scented her fur was. "My fur has never felt so smooth," she said, gently stroking the fur on her tail. The old woman smiled at Proud Heart as she took a seat next to her on a large log near the fire. "It is a recipe passed down from many generations," she explained as she pat Proud Heart on the head. "There are many tropical plants from our jungle that I use to create such fine things."

Lotsa Heart smiled as he swallowed a mouthful of banana pudding. "Did you use the sweet jumbo flower in that soap? It sure smells like it," he asked. Big Mama Tantan smiled and nodded. "I am pleased to know that you are remembering the things I am teaching you little booboo," she said.

Tugs looked at Lotsa Heart in curiosity. "You made soap?" he asked, wrinkling up his nose. "I sure did," Lotsa Heart replied, looking proud for remembering how to do it. "Big Mama Tantan showed me how to make all kinds of neat stuff, not just the stuff I made that smelled awful." Tugs felt much differently about making soap than Lotsa Heart did. "That sounds girly to me," he said as he filled his plate with food.

Hugs felt much differently than her brother. "I think it's nice that you can make soaps, Lotsa Heart. Is it hard to do?" she asked enthusiastically. Lotsa Heart shook his head. "It's not all that hard. It just takes a little time, right Big Mama Tantan?" The old woman smiled in response to Lotsa Heart's newfound knowledge. "Indeed it does. If you have the love, heart, and determination to do so, you can make whatever you like," Big Mama Tantan replied.

Hugs liked the idea of making things. "What do ya gotta do to make stuff like soap and stuff?" she asked, eyeing Big Mama Tantan eagerly. "There are many things you must do to make something nice," the old woman said. "First, you must explore the jungle for what you need. Then, you must prepare the things you have gathered. When you are prepared, you may create."

Hugs looked disappointed. "Going into the jungle sounds scary. I'd rather do girl stuff, like make the soap," she explained. Tugs on the other hand looked at the old woman eagerly. "What kinds of things do you explore for in the jungle?" he asked, standing up with interest. Big Mama Tantan smiled at the cub's enthusiasm. "It depends on what you are making and how you want it to turn out. In the case of sweet smelling soaps you will need sweet flowers."

At the mention of flowers, Hugs regained her interest. Tugs on the other hand stuck his tongue out in disgust. "Picking flowers!?!" he exclaimed. "That's too girly for me. I want a real adventure. I wanna find stuff that's really great, like treasure and alligators."

Big Mama Tantan laughed heavily, causing her large midsection to shake. "My, my, my. Where do you two get your ideas for what a girl does and what a boy does?" The cubs looked back at her, feeling confused by her question. "That's the way things always are," Tugs tried to explain. Hugs nodded in agreement. "It's been that way forever," she added. Big Mama Tantan pat the little cubs on the back to comfort their confusions. "You seem mislead little ones," she explained. "What makes a person who they are is not what they are born as. What makes a person special is what they can do with what they are given."

The cubs looked even more confused, which Big Mama Tantan got another good spirited laugh from. "Let me tell you a story to help you understand," she said. The cub's faces lit up at the possibility of a story. Listening to stories was one of their favorite things to do. "Oh, goodie goodie gosh Big Mama Tantan!" Hugs exclaimed. "Me and Tugs love stories. What's it about?"

The old tribal woman sat up as strait as her old back would allow, and looked deep into the cubs eyes. "It was more than ten years ago when my people came to this valley. Before our time here, we lived among the people at the bottom of the mountain. It was a hard life for us as a tribe, for many people found us as out of the ordinary. They wanted us to be like them instead of like our ancient ancestors. Many treated my people harshly if they did not change their ways of living to become similar to theirs."

Hugs looked bewildered by what she heard. "Why did they want you to change?" she asked. Big Mama Tantan pat the little pink cub on the head. "I do not know little one," she said. "All that I know is that this was their wish. Many of my people would conform to this way of life, while others of us longed for the ways of our ancestors. Those of us who wished to live the old ways were persecuted and treated unfairly."

Big Mama Tantan saw the sad looks on the cub's faces. She smiled tenderly at them as she lowered herself to the ground so that she could speak to them on their level. "Do not be sad little ones, for we do not hold anger toward those who were bad to us. Many of them were taught that bad behavior, and do not know the efforts to change them."

Tugs scooted closer to the old woman. "So what did you do?" he asked, leaning against the log so that he could listen to the story more comfortably. After requesting a fresh log for the fire, Big Mama Tantan continued her story. "Our tribe had to make a very difficult decision. The tribe elder, a wise old man named Galini, called us all to his son's house. We discussed our plans to leave for a better place, a place where we could live like our ancestors did in the old days. We decided to seek refuge in the mountains, living in the caves and feeding on what the land provided us with."

Big Mama Tantan's eyes grew sad and distant as she spoke. "I remember the day we left. Some of our tribe decided to turn back because the trip was far too hard for them. The rest of us persisted onward, bracing the cold of the mountains. Galini kept our weary spirits up with his ancient tribal songs and stories of old. Each night, we would create a great bonfire to warm ourselves and our spirits. Despite how tired we felt from our travels, we would sing and dance by the flames to thank our ancestors for our freedom and good fortunes. Men and women alike would dance and sing, hunt and gather for food, cook and eat what we had, and clean up what was left. We left behind our identities from the world we escaped from, and joined together in our hearts to survive. Sadly, not everyone lived to see the valley."

The cubs looked at the old woman sadly. "You mean…" Hugs said, holding a paw to her muzzle. Big Mama Tantan picked the cub up and held her close. "A part of life is leaving what we know to venture forth into the unknown. Galini knew this well, and before his soul passed from this world to go to the next, he left me to care for our tribe. I had never thought that I as a woman could lead our tribe to a better life. When I told him this, he smiled warmly upon me. He said that when he was left to lead the tribe, he felt very much the way that I did. He told me that I should not be burdened with such a worry, for though one may not feel that they are best suited for something, they must be as best as they can. I prayed and sang to the ancestors to lead me in my duties after Galini left our world to go to the next. It was one very late night when my song was heard, and our lives began to change."

Tugs nuzzled into Big Mama Tantan's warm arms. "What happened?" he asked as he lay his head on the old woman's shoulder. "Something more wonderful than I ever could have hoped for," Big Mama Tantan explained. "That night I was tired, hungry, cold, and frightened. My people were weary and beginning to give up hope. While my tribe slept, I looked deep into the embers remaining in the night's bonfire in hopes of seeing something to inspire my spirits. Before long, I saw two strange looking creatures emerge from the snow. They were cold and frightened just as I was, and no bigger than the two of you. They had black and white markings on their fur, and little hearts for noses. I called to them gently, and they looked at me with amazement in their faces. I reached for them, and slowly they came to me. I fed them with what little I had, and they were happy to eat. I held them close by the fire, and they were warmed by me. Within me I felt a great sense of fulfillment, as if these two creatures had been sent by my ancestors to help me."

Hugs and Tugs looked at the old woman with glee. "Perfect and Polite," the cubs exclaimed together happily. Big Mama Tantan smiled and nodded. "The very same," she said. "Those two little cubs gave me a feeling of hope, a feeling that I thought would never come back to me. However, they were very shy creatures, and easily frightened. As soon as they heard others awake from their sleep, the cubs became scared and fled back into the snow. I feared that I would never see them again." "But you did see them again," Tugs said. "That I did," Big Mama Tantan replied, "but before that ever happened, I missed them very much. I went to sleep that night wondering, wishing, hoping I could show them my love again. They must have had the same hopes, wishes, and wonderings that I did, and it must have warmed their hearts with something special. When my tribe and I woke up the next day, we were surprised to feel warmth around us. The land was growing abundantly, and it felt warm and loving, like this was where we belonged. We knew that we had finally found our home."

Big Mama Tantan smiled at the two cubs as she ended her story. "So you see little ones. By setting aside the preconceptions we had as men and women, we bonded together as one. We survived our journey by working as equals. Today, we still keep this tradition of equality, and it has helped us grow in love as a tribe."

The cubs looked at each other, each feeling a little ashamed of themselves. "I'm sorry," Tugs said. "Yeah, me too," Hugs added. Big Mama Tantan gave the cubs a big hug. "That is alright. So long as you learn, you will grow to better understand the wonders of life."

Off in the overgrown bush, Auntie Freeze heard the entire story. "So, it's those Care Bears that keep it warm, and that fat old woman that keeps this place running," she sneered. "I've got to get in touch with Cold Heart. Then maybe he can get me out of this God forsaken oven of a place."

Walking far enough away from the activity so as not to be heard, Auntie Freeze turned on her walkie talkie. "Come in Cold Heart," she said, awaiting response. On the other end, Frostbite picked up the walkie talkie. "Auntie Freeze!," her nephew exclaimed. "You're okay again! Is that place really warm? Are you sweating a whole bunch? Are the Care Bears down there? Pr. Cold Heart said that you've melted by now. I bet him a popsicle that you'd be okay. He owes me a popsicle now." Not wanting another barrage of questions or idiotic bets, Auntie Freeze interrupted her nephew. "Just get me Cold Heart!!!" she said sternly into the walkie talkie. "Duh, okay," Frostbite said obediently.

Within a minute, Cold Heart's voice came over the airwaves. "This is Professor Cold Heart. What's going on Auntie?" he said, sounding rather happy to know that there was a distance between himself and Auntie Freeze. "It's those darned Care Bears," Auntie Freeze explained. "They keep this valley warm. I don't know what it is, but an old woman just said it. That old woman seems to keep everything together around here, and she keeps those silly little Care Bears here so she and this tribe of hers can live here. It looks like a symbiotic relationship between the old woman and the Care Bears. I have a feeling that if we do something with the old woman, we can get rid of the Care Bears and this place should freeze over."

On the other end of the walkie talkie, Cold Heart's evil cackle was heard. "Excellent!" he said. "Tomorrow, we'll make our move. In the mean time, you stay put and wait for further instructions." "WHAT!?!" Auntie Freeze shouted angrily. "I can't stay here! I feel like a melting ice cube!" Cold Heart cackled on his end. "I'm sure you'll be just fine, my dear Auntie. Stay cool."

Before Auntie Freeze could respond, Cold Heart shut off his walkie talkie. "Grrr! That overgrown icicle!" Auntie Freeze said, kicking a coconut. "When I get back there I'll bury him so deep in the snow he'll come out as a snowman!"

*****

The house on Brindle Drive smelled of baked chicken as its inhabitants came inside. "As you can smell," Klinger explained, pointing to his large nose, "we get lots of use out of the crock pot here at Casa de la Klinger. Lemme give you the grand tour while the ladies finish getting dinner ready." Reluctantly, Dr. Winchester agreed to tour the house while Teacher Bear and Soon Lee put the cubs in the playpen.

Once the cubs were safely in their playpen, the women went to the kitchen. As Soon Lee turned off the crock pot, she noticed Teacher Bear angrily handling the mashed potatoes. "Don't let that sour puss get to you," Soon Lee said, trying to comfort her little friend. Teacher Bear took a deep breath to calm herself, which didn't seem to work. "He unzipped the back of my dress! In public! I've never been so humiliated in all my life! I was so embarrassed that I could barely look Dr. Silverberg in the eye!" Teacher Bear said as she continued to work the potatoes over emotionally. "True," Soon Lee replied, "but at least you were the innocent bystander. Besides, you've got something he doesn't." "And what, may I ask, would that be?" Teacher Bear asked, taking a moment away from her angry potato mashing. "A sense of humor," Soon Lee replied, taking the blue food coloring out of one of the cabinets. Teacher Bear smiled as soon as she saw the food coloring. "Ooooooo, won't that surprise him," she giggled wickedly as she and Soon Lee added the blue coloring to the mashed potatoes.

Once Dr. Winchester had finished seeing all of the upstairs, which did not take very long, he took a seat on the couch to watch some television. From the playpen, Thorough Heart could plainly see him and began to point at him. "Twit!" he shouted enthusiastically, pointing and giggling at Dr. Winchester. "Yes, hello again," Dr. Winchester said drolly from the couch. "Twit!" Thorough Heart responded, gurgling as he stuck his thumb into his mouth. "Don't you say anything else?" Dr. Winchester said, turning up the volume on the television to drown out the noise that the weasel cub was making. "Ba ba twit!" the cub continued on, holding up an empty bottle.

Dr. Winchester rolled his eyes as Klinger retrieved the empty bottle from Thorough Heart. "Well, you asked him," Klinger said, holding the bottle out to Dr. Winchester. The old doctor looked at the bottle with disgust. "And just what do you expect me to do with that?" he said as he put his feet up on the coffee table. Klinger sighed as he took the bottle away, understanding that Dr. Winchester was his house guest. "Very good," Dr. Winchester said as he changed the television channel. "While you're up, why don't you go check on what the women are up to, won't you?"

Klinger put on a big smile as he came into the kitchen. "Ladies," he said, grinning from ear to ear. "We have a ba ba request from Thorough Heart and his favorite 'twit.'" The girls got a giggle out of Klinger's entrance. "He's still going on about that word?" Teacher Bear said, feeling bad at the thought of her cub saying such a mean word. Soon Lee smiled and shook her head. "Don't worry your little blue head about it," she said reassuringly. "Kids say the weirdest things. It's all part of them growing up." "True," Teacher Bear replied. "I just don't want this to become a habit."

From the living room came a loud request from Dr. Winchester. "Klinger!!! The little pests have wet themselves and it smells to high heaven!" "Coming your lordship," Klinger said as he handed the empty bottle to his wife. "Can I interest you in anything else?" "Well, now that you mention it," Dr. Winchester replied snidely, "I could use a stiff belt. Have you got any good wine in the house?" "We got a bottle of red from the Kum and Go Gas Station up the street," Klinger replied. "Pass," Dr. Winchester replied, sounding disgusted.

As Klinger left the kitchen, Teacher Bear turned to Soon Lee and whispered, "Now I understand why you acted the way you did when I came here." Soon Lee nodded distastefully as she put the baked chicken onto a serving plate, setting a little bit aside to puree for the cub's dinner. "So long as he doesn't make a big mess," she said as she dressed the serving plate with peas and carrots. "At least you help keep up the house. The last few people who have stayed here have done nothing more than trash it."

"Klinger!" Dr. Winchester bellowed over the sounds and smells of the cubs. "Another one has made a mess! Judging from the smell, I think it was the skunk!" "Well, the diaper bag is over here," Klinger said and he tried putting a diaper on Hungry Heart's behind. "Me? Change a diaper?" Dr. Winchester replied, looking completely appalled at the thought of being on changing duty. "Have you gone mad! I'm a doctor, not a woman." "Alright then," Klinger responded, tossing a dirty diaper to Dr. Winchester. "You can go on trash duty."

"Oh boys! Dinner is ready," Teacher Bear said merrily as she stuck her head out the door of the kitchen. She couldn't help looking pleased at the sight of Dr. Winchester holding a dirty diaper. "Thank goodness," Dr. Winchester said, setting the soiled diaper on the coffee table.

Soon Lee saw what Dr. Winchester had done with the dirty diaper, and was not at all pleased by his actions. "Pick that up and throw it away," she said sharply. "My house is not a dumping ground." Dr. Winchester crinkled his nose as he looked at the diaper sitting on the coffee table. "And where, prey tell, would I dispose of this odious mess?" he asked arrogantly.

To help break the tension, Klinger offered to take care of the dirty diaper. "Why don't you go in and have some dinner," he offered. "You're probably hungry after the trip." Dr. Winchester nodded his head appreciatively. "Thank you, Klinger. I'm hoping that I still have an appetite after this messy incident."

The women wearily watched Dr. Winchester walk into the kitchen and wash his hands, already growing tired of his superiority complex. They were pleased that he noticed the blue mashed potatoes in disgust as he walked to the dinner table. "Did you do this?" he said, pointing to the bowl and addressing Teacher Bear. The old bear smiled sarcastically as she pulled a chair out for the rude doctor to sit in. "It's a family favorite," she said casually, offering the chair to her guest. Dr. Winchester sat himself down before examining the potatoes closer. "No wonder those little brutes of yours excrete such nasty things into their diapers," he said as he lifted the spoon from the potatoes, letting a blue lump fall back into the bowl. Teacher Bear forced a smile onto her face. "Heaven only knows what will come from you after eating them," she added before seating herself.

Once the cubs were put into their high chairs and everyone was seated, they began to say grace before their meal. "Come Lord Jesus, be our guest, and let this food to us be blessed. Amen," everyone said, save for Dr. Winchester who was unfamiliar with the mealtime prayer. Teacher Bear was pleased to see that the cubs were beginning to learn how to pray before their evening meals, finding it wonderful how they would try to fold their little paws and babble along as best they could. Even little Grateful Heart held his stubby little arm when he tried to pray. She was pleased to see the little green hedgehog cub was beginning to cope with his disability. When the prayer had ended, Klinger began cutting up the chicken.

Before dinner was served, Soon Lee had pureed a portion for the cubs to eat. The cubs seemed to really like chicken, and displayed their love for it as they crammed the mushy servings into their mouths. Dr. Winchester looked displeased as Curious Heart smeared some of the mushy food all over his face. "Must they eat with us?" he asked as the purple wolf cub blew a chickeny spit bubble with his mouth. Teacher Bear looked at Dr. Winchester with distaste. "I would prefer they do," she said. "It helps them develop social skills and family values." "Yes, well, in the mean time, I am developing an upset stomach," Dr. Winchester replied as he watched Curious Heart take a pawful of blue mashed potatoes and smash them in his face.

Teacher Bear sighed unhappily. "Would you like to have your dinner served on a TV tray in the living room?" she asked. "That would be lovely, thank you," Dr. Winchester said, standing up from the table without excusing himself. "Twit!" Thorough Heart added, pointing a messy finger at Dr. Winchester. Teacher Bear would not say it aloud, but she was thinking the same thing.

Chapter 7: Daylight Come

"Put your little hand in mine. Together there ain't no hill or mountain we…" The alarm clock came to an abrupt halt at 6:14 am. After slapping the contraption for the third time, Dr. Winchester was tempted to just turn the alarm off and call in sick. He had had a rough night between sharing his sleeping quarters with Teacher Bear and her cubs. He had woken up around 1:00 in the morning to deal with changing the cubs, woken up again around 3:30 in the morning to deal with feeding the cubs, dealt with the continuous nightly fussiness of the cubs, put up with being called a 'twit' countless times during the night by Thorough Heart, and was just plain tired from dealing with his situation. He was exhausted, and the last thing he wanted to do that morning after the night he had was talk to a bunch of interns about babies.

Rolling over once again and burying his face in the pillow, Dr. Winchester tried to squeeze a few extra minutes of sleep out of the morning. He stretched out his arms and curled them around something soft and warm. "Dr. Winchester," Teacher Bear said uncomfortably as the old doctor unconsciously held her. "Dr. Winchester. Wake up." The old doctor mumbled something inaudible in his slumber as he tightened his sleepy grasp around the little blue bear. "DR. WINCHESTER!!! I am not a teddy bear! Get off of me!!!" Teacher Bear screamed, making the old doctor jerk awake.

Taking a second to adjust his eyes, Dr. Winchester looked at the irked little bear. "Good morning, Ms. Mulcahey. Sleep well?" he said with a little yawn. "I've slept better," Teacher Bear replied, not looking suitably impressed. Dr. Winchester nodded exhaustedly, taking a look at the alarm clock. "Well, it's 6:15. I'd best be getting myself ready for this ridiculous class I have to teach."

Dr. Winchester yawned heavily as he walked to the bathroom to take his morning shower. He was surprised when he could not open the door to the bathroom. Feeling impatient, he knocked on the door. "Occupied," came Klinger's voice from the other side of the door. "Wonderful," Dr. Winchester sighed. "How much longer do you think you'll take?" "Keep your shirt on," Klinger shouted. "I'm really regular. I always have to go at 6:15 every morning whether I'm awake or not."

Dr. Winchester cringed as he heard the toilet flush. Klinger opened up the bathroom door, standing before Dr. Winchester in his bathrobe. "You might want to give it a minute to air out," he said as the stench of his excretions wafted out of the bathroom.

*****

It was another warm, sunny day in Paradise Valley, so warm in fact that Auntie Freeze was beginning to develop a heat rash. She had been sweating so much since her arrival that all her make up had run off. "I can't wait to get out of here," Auntie Freeze said uncomfortably as she adjusted her shirt collar for what seemed like the hundredth time. After her collar was as comfortable as she could make it, Auntie Freeze looked at her watch. "Cold Heart said he'd be here by now. I wonder what's holding up that worthless bag of ice."

Meanwhile, Hugs and Tugs were already awake and ready to go out into the jungle to collect ingredients for making soap. They had rushed through their breakfasts and were rushing even faster to get to Big Mama Tantan's hut. Perfect, Proud Heart, and Lotsa Heart were trying to calm the cubs down long enough to catch up to them.

Outside Big Mama Tantan's hut, Bunandi and his two children stood waiting for their guests to arrive. "Good morning children," Bunandi said as the little cubs rushed up to hug him. "I would like for you to meet my daughter, Nanya, and my son, Jullo. They have been looking forward to meeting you all morning."

The children happily shook hands with the cubs and each gave them gifts. Jullo held out a set of beautiful baskets for the cubs. "Father and I made these for you to help collect what you need," he said as the cubs each took a basket. Nanya placed a straw hat on each of the cub's heads. "These will help keep the sun from hurting your eyes," she said, smiling at her new friends.

Proud Heart, Lotsa Heart, and Perfect talked to Big Mama Tantan about the morning's plans while the children exchanged pleasantries. "So, what's on the agenda for today?" Proud Heart asked. Big Mama Tantan handed the eager cat a list of things for them to collect in the jungle. "Oh, you have much to do my friend," she explained. "First, you must go into the jungle to collect the things we need. After that, you will return to my hut to make our soap. Shall you be off then?"

The cubs and the children cheered. "Let's get going!" they shouted, running at full tilt into the jungle. Bunandi called out to the children, concerned for their safety. "Children, please wait!" he shouted to the eager youngsters. "We must all go together. You must be cautious of what is out of your sight."

Off in the distance, Cold Heart and Frostbite arrived on a snow mobile, dragging Cold Heart's ice machine that he used to build his ice castle with behind the snow mobile. "Yuck! This place is repulsive!" Cold Heart said as he stepped into an ankle deep puddle of mud. "Duh, I think it's pretty," Frostbite said as he sniffed at one of the many jungle flowers. Cold Heart bopped his assistant on the head, causing him to go nose first into a large flower. "You blockhead! We're not here to admire the foliage. We're here to turn this jungle into an icy wilderness. Now where could that crazed aunt of yours be?"

Cold Heart pulled out his walkie talkie from a coat pocket. "We're here Auntie. Where can we find you?" Cold Heart said, waiting for a response. Before long, Auntie Freeze's voice came through loud and clear. "It's about time!" she shouted. "Where are you? I can't see anything through all this blasted greenery."

Auntie Freeze took out the binoculars and searched around. Before long, she could see Cold Heart arguing with her nephew. "Stay where you are," she said into her walkie talkie. "I'll be there as soon as I can."

*****

Once everyone was seated in the family minivan, Soon Lee set the vehicle in reverse. Dr. Winchester had to cram in the back with Teacher Bear and the cubs, something that he was not thrilled with. Thorough Heart was pleased to be seated next to Dr. Winchester, and displayed so by pointing to the doctor and saying his new favorite word. "Can you say nothing else?" Dr. Winchester said as calmly as he could through gritted teeth. The cub stared at him for a second before giving the doctor a big smile. "I do piter twit," the cub said as he grabbed a piece of paper from a Mickey Mouse coloring book and a few crayons.

Seeing as how the little cub was finally distracted with his doodling, Dr. Winchester was able to attempt to relax and enjoy the bumpy ride to work. Teacher Bear smiled awkwardly at the old doctor, who looked exhaustedly back at her. "He seems to like you," she said, hoping to sound friendly. "Does he?" Dr. Winchester said flatly. "Judging by his choice of words I never would have guessed."

Before the conversation between the old man and the bear could continue, Thorough Heart held a multicolored version of Mickey Mouse up for Dr. Winchester to see. "Yes, it's lovely," Dr. Winchester replied, barely looking at the page. "Ah piter twit," Thorough Heart replied, pushing the piece of paper onto Dr. Winchester's lap. "You want me to have it?" Dr. Winchester asked, sounding rather flustered with the little cub. "Twit piter," Thorough Heart said, hugging Dr. Winchester's arm.

Dr. Winchester looked at the colored page in order to amuse the clingy cub. "It's just stunning," he mused sarcastically. "You seem to have a real knack for coloring outside of the lines. Are you planning to become the next Picasso?" "Pic… pickle?" the cub said, looking confused. "No, no, no. Picasso. He is an artist," Dr. Winchester corrected the cub. "It's easy. See? Picasso. Say it with me. Picasso." Thorough Heart clapped his hands with glee at the silly name. "Pickle, pickle, twit!" he gurgled happily.

Dr. Winchester was happy to see the hospital from the van window. Despite the fact that he wasn't looking forward to his impending lecture, it meant that he could get away from the domesticated Klinger clan and their colorful counterparts.

As soon as Klinger opened the back door of the van, Dr. Winchester nearly bounded out despite his old age and heavy build. "Thank God," he said as he adjusted his legs. "I thought I was going to be stuck in there forever with those multicolored munchkins." "Twit," Thorough Heart said sadly, holding out his arms to Dr. Winchester. Dr. Winchester looked at the cub, who continued to try to reach for him. "Have a nice day little one," Dr. Winchester said drolly before turning on his heel and not looking back.

Thorough Heart began to sob for the old doctor, shouting the word "twit" between sobs. Dr. Winchester couldn't help feeling sorry for the little creature, but the last thing he wanted was for the cub to get in the way of his work. Turning to Klinger, he whispered, "Take care of the little pest, would you?"

Chapter 8: Time To Go To Work

It was hard for her to walk through the thick underbrush in her high heels, but after about an hour Auntie Freeze was able to reunite with Cold Heart and Frostbite. "It's about time you got here," Cold Heart said rudely as Auntie Freeze dug her heels out of the mud.

Auntie Freeze bit her lip in frustration. She knew that now was not the time to be bickering, especially since she knew that the Care Bears weren't that far away from where they were. "I saw those colorful creeps going into the jungle someplace over there, and the old fat woman is still back at her hut. How do you propose to get this job done?" she said, handing Cold Heart the binoculars. The old man looked into the binoculars, searching for the colorful creatures. "It's simple my dear auntie," he said, watching his foes laugh and pick wild flowers through his binoculars. "I have brought along my ice machine that I used to make my ice castle. It'll freeze this valley solid."

Auntie Freeze looked apprehensive about the ice machine. "Okay, so you can freeze the valley. Do you expect those savages to just stand by and watch you blast down their village?" Cold Heart smiled snidely as he pulled out something from his jacket. "I have in my possession a muscle numbing freeze ray gun that I have been tinkering and experimenting with for a few months."

Auntie Freeze lifted her eyebrow in doubt. "A numbing freeze ray? What do you suppose we do with at? Make everyone's toes frost bitten?" she griped. Pr. Cold Heart looked unfazed as he brought his binoculars down from his eyes. "Have you ever noticed how those repulsive little balls of fluff squeeze their stomach muscles in order to do that Stare of theirs? If we can numb their muscles, they won't be able to attack us. So far, effects have only been temporary, but it'll work for what we need today."

Though she wouldn't admit it, Auntie Freeze was impressed. She took the binoculars back from Cold Heart and looked for the hut. "It's about 70 yards or so away from us. Last I checked, she's still there working on God knows what kind of witchcraft," she said, a small shiver running down her spine. "That fat little hag gives me the creeps with her chanting and her potions and her crazy nature living. It's unnatural!" Cold Heart let out a sarcastic snort. "Like how you give me the creeps," he said under his breath. "WHAT!?!" Auntie Freeze replied angrily. "I said, uh, she'll likely give me the creeps," Cold Heart replied, trying to cover his words. Frostbite looked at him dumbly. "Duh, I thought you said…" Before he could finish, Cold Heart bopped Frostbite on the head. "After you, Auntie," Cold Heart said in a cheesy gentlemanly manner. "Why don't you lead us to the fat old lady's hut."

*****

Nurse Bellman welcomed a less than chipper Dr. Winchester as he walked into the entrance foyer of the hospital. "Good morning, doctor. Did you sleep well?" she asked cheerfully. The old doctor returned her enthusiasm with a snide grumble. "A cow with a herniated stomach would have had a better night's sleep," he replied, taking a deep yawn. Nurse Bellman smiled sheepishly as she and Dr. Winchester walked down the hallway to the elevators. "I'm sorry to hear that you had a rough night's sleep, but the girls are looking forward to meeting you," she said as she and the doctor approached the elevator door. "They're a good bunch. Most of them are freshman, but we've got a couple of sophomores."

As soon as Nurse Bellman opened the door to the teaching room, Dr. Winchester saw a group of giggly, gossiping girls. Several of them were chatting, touching up their make-up, or fiddling with their notebooks. Nurse Bellman gave Dr. Winchester an encouraging smile, which he did not return. "Good morning girls," Nurse Bellman said as she addressed the class. The classroom of girls welcomed her warmly as she walked in, Dr. Winchester followed closely behind. "Girls, I'd like for you to meet Dr. Winchester. He'll be replacing Dr. Alderman until further notice. I know you'll treat him with the same respect you showed your previous instructor."

Dr. Winchester looked over the group of bright eyed girls. "So, you all want to take care of babies," he said drolly, getting a mixed reaction from the girls. "Think it's all fun and cute, do you? Think that babies are all just a big ball of giggles and gassy gurgles? Well, do you?"

The girls all looked at each other, wondering what on earth he was talking about. "Um, Dr. Winchester?" one of the girls said, meekly raising her hand. "Before Dr. Alderman had his stroke, we were about to discuss tests you need to do on newborns."

Dr. Winchester walked up to the student and looked unappreciatively at her. "What is your name?" he asked. "Ashley. Ashley Phelps," the girl responded uncomfortably. "Well, Ms. Phelps," Dr. Winchester replied, "I do hope you learn not to interrupt one of your patients the way you so rudely interrupted my lecture. Shall we continue, or do you find being chatty with me more fun?"

Nurse Bellman came between Dr. Winchester and Ashley. "Ashley is right, Dr. Winchester," the nurse said, showing him a notebook that Dr. Alderman had been using during his lectures. "We're supposed to be lecturing about Apgar testing this afternoon, followed by demonstrating how it's done on a doll."

Dr. Winchester stared at the book before looking at his nurse assistant. "Would you mind putting that silly thing away. I have things to teach," he said arrogantly, causing Nurse Bellman to back away with his tone.

The classroom stared oddly at Dr. Winchester as he brought out a video cassette tape and put it into the classroom television VCR. "Ladies, I do not think you realize the extent of what you are about to undertake as a natal nurse," the old doctor said as he switched on the television. "This little movie will prepare you for the horrors of delivery, the likes of which several of you may have never seen before!"

Very dramatically, Dr. Winchester pressed the play button on the VCR. The girls looked at each other once again, only feeling much more confused. "Um, I hate to interrupt you again, Dr. Winchester," Ashley said, raising her hand, "but we saw this movie on the first day of class." Dr. Winchester stared at the student with aggravation. "Than perhaps you need a refresher," Dr. Winchester replied, turning up the volume on the TV. "Now if our friend Ms. Phelps will kindly stop interrupting, we'll go further into detail the process of birth…"

*****

Nurse Jones was thrilled to know that the Mulcahey cubs were once again in the playroom while their guardian worked for the day. Having finished giving her patients their medicine that hour, she decided to bring a cart of bottles and fresh diapers by the playroom to see if her favorite little cuties needed anything.

The cubs all looked up from what they were doing as they saw her walk in. "Hiya cutie pies," she said as she got down to their level. "How's my favorite little angle cookies doing today? Anybody want a ba-ba?"

Each of the cubs crawled up to Nurse Jones, which she was more than happy with. She gave each of them a bottle of formula and began to check their diapers to see if any of them needed a change.

While sucking on his bottle, Thorough Heart couldn't help noticing the cart with fascination. It had all sorts of things on it, all of which he wanted to investigate. Looking over at Nurse Jones, he saw that she was busying herself with changing Hungry Heart's diaper. He saw this as an opportunity to hop on the bottom of the cart to take a look around.

While Nurse Jones finished the little yellow billygoat's diaper change, another nurse barged into the playroom. "Jones, come quick," the other nurse said. "We've got a patient having a bad reaction to her medicine in room 308."

Nurse Jones grabbed the cart and rolled it out of the playroom as quickly and safely as she could, not even having time to say goodbye to the cubs. Little did she know she had a stow away.

*****

It took about a good half hour for Auntie Freeze and her henchmen to reach Big Mama Tantan's hut. They hadn't anticipated all the lush greenery to get in their way so easily. "This is the place," she said as she wiped sweat from her face for what felt like the thousandth time. "Be careful. This old hag probably has the place hexed!"

Frostbite looked at his aunt with confusion. "What's a hexed?" he asked as he wiped sweat from his brow before putting his winter hat back on. Auntie Freeze rolled her eyes. "Never mind. Just watch out for anything suspicious," she said as she started looking around the hut for any sign of booby traps.

Inside, Big Mama Tantan was busing herself with the prep work needed for making soaps. She was humming gently to herself as she set out bowls of various sizes. Before she knew it, she thought she heard a twig snap. "Hmmmm… I wonder if my little item runners are back early. They must need something," she said as she went for the door.

Having no preconceived plan on how to catch the old woman, Auntie Freeze grabbed the two men and dove behind the hut before Big Mama Tantan could see them. "Hello little ones," Big Mama Tantan said as she opened the door to her hut, expecting to see someone there. She was surprised to see that no one was there at her door. "Well, that is strange. Perhaps it is an animal wanting something from my home," she said as she looked around the front of her hut to find the culprit of the noise.

Big Mama Tantan continued to search in the dirt around her hut for animal prints, clicking her tongue welcomingly in hopes of finding some kind of animal. "Strange that I see no animal markings. These are tracks of someone I have never seen before," she said, scratching her head in wonder as she looked at the prints leading up to a thick bush behind her hut. "Whoever you are, track maker, I will not harm you. Come out to me, and we shall share some food, yes?"

Auntie Freeze began to tremble as the old woman came closer to their hiding spot. "We're done for," she whispered into Cold Heart's ear. "Not yet," Cold Heart said as he pulled the numbing freeze ray out from inside his coat. "This should cool things down a bit."

Before anyone could react, Cold Heart stood up from his hiding spot and blasted a beam of ice at the old tribal woman. Big Mama Tantan screamed as the beam hit her. "You wicked creature!" she shouted as she began to collapse, wrapping her arms around herself in an vain attempt to warm her body. She could feel the muscles in her body begin to disagree with her, causing her body to fall to the ground in a numb cold. "Ancestors on high, help me! Free me from this cold!" she shouted as her captors approached her, cackling wickedly.

Big Mama Tantan's screams for help were heard throughout the village. Everyone who heard the cries of their beloved elder left what they were doing to aid her. Even the visiting Care Bears could hear her and ran back to her hut to help her. "I hope she's alright, and that's the truth," Lotsa Heart said as he and his friends ran back to the old woman's hut. "Wait!" Bunandi shouted, grabbing Lotsa Heart by the ear. "We must not rush into what we do not know. I think it best that we look for a strategy for rescue than risk becoming victims. Sometimes it is best to see the danger and not let the danger see you."

Lotsa Heart nodded in agreement. "You're right. I'm sorry, and that's the truth," the pink elephant said. Bunandi forgave him quickly. "Your heart told you to help, but your head knew no better," he replied. "Let us move swiftly and safely until we know what is ahead of us."

Pr. Cold Heart held out his numbing freeze ray menacingly to the growing crowd of helpers. "Stand back! She's mine!" he shouted to the crowd, shooting beams of ice out into the crowd to weigh his point. The villagers shouted harshly at the invaders hoping to intimidate them. "Return her to us and leave!" one village woman shouted, traipsing up to Cold Heart to show that she was not afraid. "Oh no you don't," Cold Heart replied, blasting the woman with his numbing freeze ray. The woman shouted as she was covered in a thick sheet of ice, her muscles giving out on her due to cold numbness. "Let this be a lesson to the rest of you," Cold Heart said as he pointed to the woman he had just blasted. "This valley belongs to me now. You will all follow my command, for I am your leader now. Would any of you like to join my slavery program? I will allow you to live here in my valley of ice with little worries if you join my slavery program." The villagers looked confused as Cold Heart continued to speak. "Anyone for the slavery program? Anyone? You'll get college credit. Any takers?"

Being the most silent on their feet, Jullo and Proud Heart poked their heads out from the forest. "It is a blue man, and he has Big Mama Tantan," Jullo whispered to Proud Heart. The tan cat narrowed her eyes in anger. "His name is Pr. Cold Heart," she hissed. "He's a menace, and it looks like he's threatening the rest of the villagers with that gun of his. We've got to get in there and save them."

Perfect looked confused as Jullo and Proud Heart reported what they saw. "How will we catch him if he is armed?" he asked. "We must do this safely so the people won't be harmed." Jullo nodded in agreement. "He seems to be keeping an eye on the crowd. If we can stay out of his gaze, we should be able to sneak up on him." "Very good idea son," Bunandi said. "We need to sneak around the crowd so we can come from behind and surprise him."

They walked through the jungle's edge until they were in a good spot behind Big Mama Tantan's hut. They could see the crowd being intimidated by Cold Heart and his minions and were waiting for an opportunity to strike.

As Cold Heart and Auntie Freeze continued to heckle the crowd, Frostbite began to get bored and distracted. Seeing that his aunt and the professor were preoccupied, he figured they wouldn't notice if he wandered off for a bit.

Sneaking away, Frostbite was able to get behind his superiors. He was really enjoying the variety of colors that the valley provided compared to his icy home, especially the pretty flowers. He picked a big orange flower and brought it up to his nose, enjoying its sweet fragrance. The scent and the pollen began to tickle the inside of his nose, and before he knew it, he let out a loud sneeze. "Bless you," came a voice from the jungle's overgrowth.

Frostbite thanked the voice from the bushes and went back to his flower before realizing what had happened. "Pr. Cold Heart!" he called out, looking around for any sign of someone being there. "Hey Pr. Cold Heart! Somebody's back here!"

Pr. Cold Heart was not happy with coming back behind the hut, but he did so just in case there was something he needed to know about. "What are you doing back here you bumbling buffoon?" he said, bopping Frostbite on the head. "Somebody's back here. I heard them," Frostbite replied, pointing to the overgrowth of plants by the hut. "I heard them say 'bless you' when I sneezed!"

Cold Heart was getting at the end of his patience. He wanted to get back to heckling the villagers and taking control, but his little henchman was persistent about someone hiding in the bushes. In order to ease Frostbite's mind and get back to what he was doing, Cold Heart doused the overgrowth with a blast from his numbing freeze ray.

Cold Heart was expecting to get nothing from blasting the overgrowth in icy beams, but instead he was surprised to hear people shouting in discomfort. "We… got someone?" he said as he walked over to where he heard the people. Sure enough, he discovered the Care Bears he was after along with a few natives. Overjoyed with his success, Cold Heart shouted for Auntie Freeze. "Get some rope you old hag! We got'em!"

*****

Dr. Winchester had let the girls out for a five minute break, and they gladly walked out to refresh themselves. "Be back in ten minutes, no more! I will not by any means accept tardiness from you young ladies," Dr. Winchester said to his unenthusiastic students. He could hear them mumbling and giggling about him as they passed him in the doorway.

After the students left the classroom, Dr. Winchester decided to take a brief walk down the hallway to help wake himself up some more. The reason he had put in the video tape was so that he could sip at his thermos of coffee and collect himself without embarrassing himself too much. He knew full well what he had to teach that day, but was ashamed to mention that he was both exhausted and a wee bit nervous about picking up on where another instructor had left off without being as prepared as he should have been.

The old doctor scoffed at the sight of the plain looking hospital as he walked down the hallway. "At least Boston General looks like a place of health rather than a rundown hole in the wall," he thought to himself as he looked at the bland surroundings in the hallway. He yawned with boredom as he peeked absentmindedly into some of the patient's hospital rooms. "What a wretched place to die," he thought to himself as he continued to walk and observe, not paying much attention to what was directly in front of him.

While window shopping at the bland hospital rooms, Dr. Winchester absentmindedly bumped into a cart outside of a room. "What the devil," he shouted with aggravation as he looked at the cart, noticing that there were bottles and diapers loaded onto it.

Nurse Jones popped her head out of the room she was in when she heard Dr. Winchester shouting. "Oh my goodness. Sir, are you alright?" she asked as she saw Dr. Winchester looking vexed at the cart. "What does it look like you clumsy clot!" Dr. Winchester replied loudly, making Nurse Jones feel terrible with his fowl attitude. "I'm so sorry," Nurse Jones apologized as she tried to move the cart out of the huffy doctor's way. "I was checking in on the children in the playroom when I heard about one of the patents having a bad reaction to her medicine. I had to rush in and help her so I had to leave the cart outside the room. Are you hurt? I can't tell you how sorry I am."

As Dr. Winchester continued to listen to Nurse Jones yammer on about her apology, he felt something tug at his pant leg. "Twit!" came the voice of little Thorough Heart from the floor. "What on earth are you doing down here?" Dr. Winchester said as he picked the cub up from the floor.

Nurse Jones looked completely mortified. "Oh no! How did you get out of the playroom?" she said, looking completely terrified at the thought of the cub being out and about. "Please, sir, keep an eye on this little one. I've got to check on the other ones in the playroom to see if they got out too."

Before Dr. Winchester could debate with the worried nurse, she dashed off down the hall to the playroom, leaving the little orange weasel cub in Dr. Winchester's care. The cub was thrilled to be with Dr. Winchester, and happily snuggled up to him while saying his new favorite word.

"Awwwwww! That's so cute!" came the voices the students when they saw Dr. Winchester holding the cub. The girls crowded around Dr. Winchester and the little cub, giving the little cub a great deal of attention. Dr. Winchester was pleased to know that the students were behaving so positively around him as apposed to how they were reacting to him earlier, even if most of the attention was directed at the cub.

Nurse Jones returned quickly, looking fairly relieved. "He's the only one that got out," she said as she rejoined Dr. Winchester. "Got out of where?" came the voice of Dr. Silverberg from behind the crowd. "What's with the crowd in the hallway? Dr. Winchester, what is going on?"

Once again, Nurse Jones looked nervous. "I'm sorry, Dr. Silverberg. Thorough Heart is okay though. He was just…" Dr. Winchester cut the nervous nurse off while she was talking. "I requested him to be taken out of the playroom to assist me in my teaching. We will be discussing Apgar tests, and your nurse was kind enough to fetch him for me," Dr. Winchester explained.

Nurse Jones was completely beside herself, but Dr. Winchester shot her a look that clearly said "don't say a word." She smiled appreciatively, playing along with what he had to say. "Uh, yeah. The little cub is helping with the class today. I hope you don't mind."

Dr. Silverberg smiled, happy to see that the doctor he had doubts about was starting to get along with his staff. "Carry on then, and have fun with the little one," he said before leaving the crowd.

Nurse Jones breathed a sigh of relief as Dr. Winchester lead his students back into their classroom. "Excuse me, Dr. Winchester," she said, taking him aside for a second. "I just wanted to thank you for covering for me." "I wasn't covering for you," he replied nonchalantly. "I'm just glad that the cub will be useful for instructional purposes. You just happened to come by at the right time. Don't get used to me covering up for your incompetence." Before Nurse Jones could respond, Dr. Winchester closed the door to the classroom.

Chapter 9: Improvise

To save rope and make movement difficult for the villagers, Cold Heart and Auntie Freeze tied several groups of the natives together by their hands and feet. When all the villagers were securely tied, Cold Heart left Auntie Freeze in charge of watching over them while he and Frostbite went back to the ice machine at the edge of the jungle. Auntie Freeze was left with the numbing freeze ray and was instructed to blast anyone who looked like they were beginning to defrost or get restless.

Auntie Freeze wasn't particularly thrilled with playing watchdog, but at this point she was happy that she didn't have to traipse around in the mud again. "I've had enough of this touchy feely tropical mud hole," she said to herself as she walked around the groups of tied up villagers, holding out the numbing freeze ray in case she needed to blast someone. "Next time I walk around though here, I'm looking forward to having something cold under my feet."

The captured Care Bears and their village friends were tied together. They were trying to huddle close together to warm themselves despite the awkwardness of being tied up the way that they were. Tugs was eyeballing Auntie Freeze with anger as she passed by the colorful group. He was frustrated because everything seemed to be going well until Lotsa Heart said "bless you" to Frostbite.

It was apparent that Tugs wasn't the only one who felt upset by Lotsa Heart's mistake. If looks could kill, Proud Heart would have taken out the poor pachyderm. "I can't believe you Lotsa Heart," she said to the pink elephant. "You just had to say 'bless you' instead of keeping your big mouth shut. We could have had everything under control and not been in this mess, but you had to go and be polite."

Lotsa Heart lowered his head in shame as his friends agreed with Proud Heart. "I'm really sorry, and that's the truth," he said. "It's almost like a reflex sometimes, you know? I just can't help being helpful sometimes, and it really got everybody in a big mess."

Tugs noticed a tear roll down Lotsa Heart's cheek, and he felt bad about seeing him cry. "Don't worry about it," he said, despite the disagreeing looks from his comrades. "We're just frustrated that we're in this situation." Lotsa Heart perked up his head a little bit and smiled weakly. "You're right," he said. "It's like what Big Mama Tantan says, you can't help being who you are, and that's the truth."

Despite the fact that Lotsa Heart was beginning to feel a little better about his mistake, Hugs was still feeling uneasy. "Tugs," Hugs whispered rather ashamedly, "I'm scared. What should we do?" Tugs was at a total loss for words. He was cold and his muscles were numb and stiff from the freeze ray. He was worried and wanted to give his sister an answer, but could hardly think of anything to say. "I wish we could get everybody someplace safe and warm, but I can't think of anything," he admitted. Hugs rested her head on her knees, trying to fight off her frustrated tears. "If only we could get Auntie Freeze distracted long enough and get these ropes off," she said, letting a tear roll down her cheek.

Suddenly, Tug's face lit up. "Hugs, you're a genius!" he said. "We've got to get Auntie Freeze distracted!" Despite the compliment, Hugs was confused. "How are we gonna do that, Tugs?" she asked. "I don't know," Tugs said. "We've got to look around and find something."

The two cubs looked around for anything that would distract the old crone. "Man, she looks bad," Hugs said, observing how red Auntie Freeze's neck looked due to the heat rash. "It looks like she's been sweating an awful lot. Even her make-up's all sweated off." "Yeah," Tugs said, looking at the lack of make up on the old woman's face. "Hey, that gives me an idea! You guys, work with me on this one."

Further away from the group, Auntie Freeze was blasting away at a tied up group of natives. "That'll teach you to yack off at me you heathens!" she said as she watched the group writher about in frosty agony. She smiled to herself as she watched the people suffer, but her smile quickly subsided as she saw the Care Bears conversing together in the corner of her eye. "What are you fuzzy little devils up too!" she shouted to the Care Bears as she made her way over to them.

Despite being scared of the old woman, Tugs put on the most confident face he could. "We're talking about you, Auntie Freeze," he said very casually. "I don't know if you've noticed, but you look really bad lately."

Auntie Freeze was taken aback with the cub's brutal observation of the obvious. "How dare you!" she said, pointing the numbing freeze ray at the little blue cub. Despite feeling afraid of the ray gun, Tugs continued to play it cool. "Okay, if you gotta blast me, than you gotta blast me," he said in a surprisingly calm tone of voice. "Either way, it won't make that nasty heat rash go away. Too bad really, because me and Lotsa Heart here know a really good remedy for healing that rash."

Despite the fact that she was feeling agitated by the little bear, Auntie Freeze was intrigued by the idea of getting rid of her heat rash. "What are you babbling on about you blithering little bear?" she said, lowering her weapon to hear more about the bear's remedy. Pleased to know he was making head way, Tugs began to explain what he could do to help. "It's a natural salve that Big Mama Tantan showed us how to make," he said, hoping that his explanation would help bait his enemy.

Auntie Freeze's suspicions rose once again. "You mean that fat old witch?" she said in a huffy tone. Despite the reactions from the other Care Bears, Tugs continued to keep his cool. "Well, we made it, so you know it's safe," he said, trying to sound convincing despite how offended he was about Auntie Freeze saying something so insulting about Big Mama Tantan.

Auntie Freeze continued to feel suspicious, but the rash under her collar wasn't getting any more comfortable. "Where is this stuff?" she asked, not feeling very confident in the little bear. "Me and Lotsa Heart are gonna have to show you," he replied. "All you gotta do is untie us and we'll get it for you." Auntie Freeze sneered at the little cub, holding the numbing freeze ray up to his face. "What kind of idiot do you think I am!" she shouted menacingly. Tugs gave the old woman a kindly smile despite having a ray gun pressed up against his forehead. "No idiot at all," he replied kindly. "You just follow us around the whole time and you'll have no troubles at all. We might even find you something to help with the make-up you've sweated off. What do you say?"

*****

"This is little Thorough Heart Mulcahey," Dr. Winchester said, holding the little orange weasel cub up to the classroom for all to see. "He belongs to the little blue bear at the receptionist's desk and he will be helping me demonstrate Apgar testing. Before we begin, does anyone know what an Apgar test is?" Several of the students shook their heads, which Dr. Winchester expected but still sneered upon. "If you look in your text books, you will see that the Apgar test is the very first tests given to a newborn. The test is designed to quickly evaluate a newborn's physical condition after delivery and determine any immediate need for extra medical or emergency care."

Pleased with being able to look well informed for a change, Dr. Winchester took a piece of chalk and began writing on the board. Thorough Heart enjoyed the sound that the chalk made as it scraped across the board. "Pickle!" he said, pointing to the piece of chalk in Dr. Winchester's hand. "No, it's chalk. You use it to write things," the old doctor said as he held the piece of chalk up for the cub to see. Thorough Heart snatched the piece of chalk out of Dr. Winchester's hand and began using it on the board. The class of girls let out a collective "awwwwwww" as the cub began to doodle on the board. "Apparently, we will be getting an art lesson along with our lecture," Dr. Winchester joked, unable to help smiling at his little orange assistant. "Pickle!" the cub said happily at his little drawing.

As soon as he was able to free the chalk from the cub's grip, Dr. Winchester continued on with his lecture. "The Apgar test was developed in 1952 by an anesthesiologist by the name of Virginia Apgar," he explained. "The wonderful thing about Ms. Apgar's last name is that is has been widely used as an acronym for her famous test." Taking the piece of chalk, he wrote the letters A-P-G-A-R vertically on the board along with the word that each letter represented. "The A stands for Activity, the P for Pulse, the G for Grimace, the other A for Appearance, and the R for Resporation. Any questions so far?" The class shook their heads, giving their instructor a much better reaction than earlier in the lecture thanks to little Thorough Heart. "Good, we can continue," Dr. Winchester said enthusiastically as he quickly looked over the notes for more to say.

"The Apgar test is to be taken a minimum of twice," he continued to explain. "Once being the minute that the child is born and twice being five minutes after the baby is born. The test can be administered a third time if the baby has low scores but seems to be improving. During the test, the baby can receive one of three scores for each category, a 2, a 1, or a 0. Now, let us begin demonstrating these tests, shall we little one?"

Dr. Winchester set Thorough Heart down on the desk in order to begin his demonstration. The cub looked up at him happily and began to gurgle. "The first A, Activity. In order to test the activity for a newborn, you must check his reflexes. The easiest way to do this is to brush your finger alongside the baby's feet to see if it curls its legs up," he said, demonstrating what he just said. Sure enough, Thorough Heart curled his legs up in response to having his feet brushed up against. "The next part of testing the child's activity level is to place your finger in the child's hand. If the child grasps onto your hand, it is a very good sign," he continued to explain, placing his finger into Thorough Heart's paw. Sure enough, the cub wrapped his fingers around Dr. Winchester's finger, only he did not want to let go. "Alright, little one. We've proved our point. I need my finger back now," he said, gently trying to pull his finger out of the cub's grasp. Thorough Heart found it funny, and stuck the doctor's finger in his mouth. The class let out another collective "awwwwww" at the sight of the cub sucking on the doctor's finger.

Though he enjoyed hearing the classroom sounding positive, Dr. Winchester did not like the feeling of the cub's wet mouth on his finger. Once he was able to pry his finger away from the cub, Dr. Winchester continued with his lecture. "A 2 in this case means that the baby displays normal activity, responding vigorously just as our little model has. A 1 means that they are displaying some flexing and activity. A 0 means that the baby is limp and showing no signs of detectable movement. If no movement persists after five minutes, you as the natal nurse should alert the doctor to run further tests. Are there any questions?"

Ashley raised her hand. "What could be the cause of a 0 on the activity section?" she asked. "Ah, a very good question, Ms. Phelps," Dr. Winchester responded positively. "There are several possibilities as to why a child could score a 0. It could be caused by birth defects, cerebral palsy, poor prenatal nutrition, fetal alcohol syndrome… the list goes on and on, but it is your responsibility to be the first to notice if something is amiss."

Pleased with the answer and seeing no other questions, Dr. Winchester continued on with his lecture. "The P, Pulse. Using your stethoscope, you need to listen to the baby's heartbeat. A 2 is categorized by over 100 beats per minute, signifying a strong heart. A 1 is less than 100 beats per minute. A 0 means that the baby's heart is not beating and the infant needs to be revived." The girls gasped at the thought of a child without a heartbeat, but Dr. Winchester reassured them. "This is fairly uncommon, but being attentive is key. The quicker you act, the more likely you are to save a baby's life. Now, Nurse Bellman, would you hand me the stethoscope?"

Doing as she was told, Nurse Bellman handed Dr. Winchester a stethoscope. After putting the ear pieces in his ears, Dr. Winchester held the listening end to Thorough Heart's chest. "This child has a very strong heartbeat," he said as he listened to the little cub's heart. Thorough Heart smiled and tugged at the stethoscope, pulling the ear pieces from Dr. Winchester's ears. After successfully taking the stethoscope, Thorough Heart put the ear pieces in his own ears and held up the listening end to Dr. Winchester's forehead. The classroom began to laugh as the cub pretended to listen to the inside of Dr. Winchester's head. "Anything interesting going on in there?" Dr. Winchester joked, the classroom laughing in response. "Twit!" the cub replied, smiling as he placed the end of the stethoscope on Dr. Winchester's nose.

Once the stethoscope was set aside, Dr. Winchester was able to move onto the next portion of his test. "Next is G, Grimace. The easiest way to test this is by using a small suction device to remove the mucus that has collected in the baby's throat and nasal passages during its time in the mother's womb. Nurse Bellman, could you hand me the suctioning device used on newborns?"

Nurse Bellman gave the doctor a little blue suction device that looked like a small, thin turkey baster. "The baby builds up this mucus in order to avoid drowning in the womb's prenatal fluids," Dr. Winchester continued explaining. "Once the baby is out of the mother's womb it will need to be able to breath on its own, thus you must remove the mucus. In your mucus removal, you will easily be able to test the grimace reflexes. Let us demonstrate how this is done and begin examining what to look for when testing grimace reflexes."

Opening Thorough Heart's mouth, Dr. Winchester crammed the suction device into his throat. Thorough Heart protested having the device in his mouth, and began to squirm and cough. "Babies who cough, gag, and protest you doing your job show that their throat muscles are strong. These are the ones who receive a 2," he explained as he began trying to shove the suction device into Thorough Heart's nose. "Babies who simply make protesting faces but do nothing about it receive a 1. Babies who have no response to your work receive a 0." Once Dr. Winchester finished his demonstration, Thorough Heart grabbed the suction device and threw it on the floor. "Twit!" he shouted, crying heavily. The class of girls each felt badly for the little cub, but Dr. Winchester was the first to act on it. "There there now," he said as he picked up the cub and tenderly held it close. "You're doing just fine, little one. Hush now."

After a brief minute of crying, Thorough Heart had settled down and began acting normal again. Dr. Winchester couldn't help smiling at the helpful little cub, which seemed to trigger another "awwwwww" response from his students. "Settle down girls, we still have two more steps to go in the test," he said, trying to regain his composure. "Next we'll be discussing the second A, Appearance. Though young Thorough Heart here isn't the best example of this, he'll have to do. To gain a 2, the baby must have a good healthy coloration throughout its entire exterior. A baby who has a bluish tint on their hands and feet but relatively good color otherwise receives a 1. A baby whose skin takes on a pale or bluish gray hue receives a 0. Are there any questions?"

Again, Ashley raised her hand. "Does the baby's skin pigment affect this?" she asked. "Not normally, but another good question, Ms. Phelps," Dr. Winchester answered. "Most cases of ill tinting to the skin can be caused by poor blood circulation, poor air circulation, and genetic issues; again the list goes on and on."

Once Ashley's question was answered, Dr. Winchester moved onto the last part of the Apgar test. "The final part of the test is the R, Respiration," he said. "The easiest way to test for good respiration is by listening to the baby cry. If the child has a strong sounding cry, like our little friend here, than this is a good sign. If the child's cry is strong and it breaths at a normal rate with little effort, the child receives a 2. If the child's cry sounds more like a meek whimper and it displays slow or irregular breathing, the child receives a 1. If the child is not breathing at all, it receives a 0 and must be resuscitated. Are there any further questions?"

With no questions from the students, Dr. Winchester smiled contently. "Very good ladies. I think we pulled through this rather well, don't you think little Thorough Heart?" The cub smiled happily at the old doctor as his tummy made a gurgling sound. Scrunching up his little face, Thorough Heart began to make a mess in his diaper. Dr. Winchester winced at the foul smell the cub had produced. Holding the cub out to the classroom, Dr. Winchester asked, "Would any of you like to earn some extra credit?"

*****

Despite the clear instructions given by Pr. Cold Heart, Auntie Freeze untied Tugs and Lotsa Heart so that they could heal her heat related afflictions. At this point she felt that anything, even something made of witchcraft voodoo magic, was better than nothing as far as the heat rash was concerned. She followed closely behind them as they limped numbly into Big Mama Tantan's hut, watching for any signs of escape. Since Lotsa Heart had paid a great deal of attention to Big Mama Tantan's teachings, he was able to give Auntie Freeze a salve to help with her heat rash. "Oh wow!" Auntie Freeze exclaimed as she generously applied the salve to her rash. "This feels soooooo good."

Tugs was thrilled that the first part of his plan was starting to work. "I'm glad you're starting to feel better," he said, smiling immensely to show her some form of support. "Now that you're starting to feel a little better, why don't we work on making you look a little better."

Auntie Freeze stopped applying salve and stared down the bear. "What are you talking about?" she asked, feeling rather offended. "Oh, not much," Tugs said, hoping to egg her on in the right direction. "I just meant that the heat has really taken a toll on your good looks. We made some creams that'll help make you look really good again, right Lotsa Heart?"

The pink elephant looked confused, but Tugs gave him a look that said "just play along." "Uh, yeah," Lotsa Heart said uneasily. "Sure, lots of stuff. All kinds of stuff. More stuff than a, uh, mountain of stuff." Sensing Lotsa Heart's unease, Tugs wrapped a defrosting arm around him and gave Auntie Freeze a numb thumbs up. Auntie Freeze looked at the two Care Bears with a little bit of doubt, but decided to give them a try. After all, the salve they gave her was really helping her feel better. "Alright, show me what you've got," she said as she continued to apply the healing salve all over her heat rash again.

While Tugs and Lotsa Heart rummaged around for anything that would keep Auntie Freeze busy, an uncomfortable noise could be heard outside the hut. Torn between keeping an eye on the untied Care Bears and keeping an eye on the natives, Auntie Freeze told Tugs and Lotsa Heart to stay put while she checked on the noise.

With Auntie Freeze out of the way, Tugs was able to whisper into Lotsa Heart's ear. "Listen closely," he said. "It's really important that we distract Auntie Freeze and find a way to cover her eyes. Once she's fully distracted, I'll untie Hugs and Proud Heart, and they can untie everyone else and get them to safety. Got it?" Lotsa Heart smiled broadly as he began to understand. "So that's why you were so interested in Auntie Freeze's well being," he said, patting Tugs on the head with his trunk. "Clever thinking. You bet I'll do what I can, and that's the truth."

"What's the truth?" came the voice of Auntie Freeze from behind them. She was holding the numbing freeze ray suspiciously, the end still giving off some steamy condensation from being recently blasted. "The truth?" Lotsa Heart said uncomfortably. "We, uh, were discussing how your face needs some moisturizer, weren't we Tugs?" "Oh, of course," Tugs added in. "And your nails need to be done too. Just let us take care of you."

*****

Today was fairly busy at General Pershing's Veterans Hospital, leaving the receptionists with lots and lots of paperwork to sort through. Soon Lee was busy at the computer, typing in updated medical records for someone who had just left.

While the two were busy, someone came rushing in frantically. "Excuse me," he said as calmly as possible despite how heavily he was breathing. Soon Lee stood up from her duties to talk to the man. "Yes. Can I help you?" she asked. The man approached the desk and leaned against it to better catch his breath. "I hate to barge in, but my mother just fell out in front of my house. She said that her hip hurts, and I think she needs and X-ray. I've got her in the car, and I need to bring her in. Do you have any wheelchairs?"

Soon Lee walked around the desk to grab a wheelchair for the frantic man. "Don't you worry about a thing," she said as she grabbed a wheelchair. "I'll bring the wheelchair out to your mother and show you both to the emergency room. Teach, can you watch the front desk while I'm away?"

Teacher Bear peeked around the desk and gave Soon Lee a big thumbs up. "I'll do the best I can," she said with an enthusiastic smile. "You just take care of this poor man's mother. I'll be here when you get back."

The frantic man rubbed his eyes at the sight of the little blue bear, but he was too worried about his mother to go into anything. He and Soon Lee went out of the lobby with the wheelchair, leaving Teacher Bear to her filing.

Once things had started to settle down again, Teacher Bear continued to put patient files away. As she put up the files that read "MRI's", she thought she heard someone familiar coming up behind her. "Oh, hello Nurse Jones. Good to see you," she said happily while continuing to do her filing. "How are the cubs? Fairing well I trust?"

Nurse Jones smiled nervously as she approached her little friend. "Hello Miss Mulcahey," she said. "Um, I hope you don't mind, but Dr. Winchester has your little Thorough Heart right now."

Teacher Bear stopped in mid file. "He what?" she said, a twinge of apprehension in her voice. "What in blue blazes he doing with my cub?" "He, uh, said he's using him for his classroom," Nurse Jones explained. "He didn't give me many details though. I think he's still in the classroom on floor 3."

Teacher Bear set the files down. "I'd better check this out as soon as Soon Lee comes back," she said, sounding worried. "Heaven only knows what that fringed old fool is doing to my cub."

*****

Auntie Freeze sat back in an elongated bamboo chair, enjoying having Tugs and Lotsa Heart spread all sorts of things on her face, hands, and feet. "You know, when all this is over with, you two should come back to the ice castle," she said, smiling broadly as she took a sip of juice from a coconut shell cup. "I can make you two my personal beauticians."

Tugs cringed at the thought of going to Cold Heart's castle to work for Auntie Freeze, but he kept a broad smile on his face to keep her pacified. "Sounds great," he said, giving her a big cheesy smile. "While we're at it, why don't we do something about those tired looking eyes. We've got a great remedy." "Sure," Auntie Freeze said contently, leaning her head back comfortably. "I'm all for it. You two are surprisingly good at this. Those rainbows up in Care-A-Lot must be rubbing off on you two boys, if you know what I mean."

Grabbing a few small leaves from a nearby flowering plant, Tugs applied them to Auntie Freeze's eyes. He put a thick layer of a mucky brown face mud over the leaves to keep them in place. "We'll keep these on for a few minutes to lock in some moisture. Your eyes will feel great in no time," he smiled, winking at Lotsa Heart. "In the mean time, I'm going to go grab some more toenail oil. Lotsa Heart, could you keep an eye on Auntie Freeze and make sure she has enough juice?" "You bet," Lotsa Heart said as he watched Tugs sneak away as quick as his numb legs would let him to put the rest of his plan into action.

Hugs and Proud Heart were surprised to see Tugs coming near them with a few native knives. Tugs held his finger up to his lips to hush them. "What are you doing?" Hugs whispered as Tugs began to cut the ropes. "Trying to keep Auntie Freeze distracted," Tugs replied as he cut Hugs loose. "I need you to cut everyone's ropes so that they can get someplace safe."

Hugs was shocked. "I can't walk around with a knife!" she exclaimed. Tugs shushed her as quickly as he could. "Sure you can. You're really quiet on your feet, and you're really steady and careful with your paws. Remember when you let the butterfly climb on your finger?"

Despite Tugs encouragement, Hugs was still doubtful. "I don't know, Tugs. This seems like something a boy should do," she said doubtfully. Tugs set a reassuring paw on his sister's shoulder. "I know it seems weird doing something boyish," he said, "but think how weird it is for me giving someone a make over."

Hugs couldn't help smiling. "You're right," she admitted. "It's like what Big Mama Tantan said at the fire last night. We've got to think about the group instead of what's girly or boyish." Tugs smiled as he handed his sister the native knife. "That's the spirit," he said. "Besides, you just need someone older to help you. Proud Heart, why don't you help Hugs with the rope cutting." Proud Heart agreed to help Hugs, taking a native knife from the little blue cub. "Great," Tugs said as he relayed instructions. "Now, you two need to go around and cut everyone's ropes to free them and then get them someplace where they'll be warm and safe. Now hurry, and be quiet! We don't have much time!"

Chapter 10: What Are You Doing?

Students filed out of the instructional classroom, giggling happily as they waved goodbye to baby Thorough Heart. Ashley leaned in to kiss the little cub on the forehead before leaving the classroom. "I hope you use him again in your lectures, Dr. Winchester," she said as she affectionately tussled the cub's hair. "I certainly hope to," Dr. Winchester replied, happy that the little mishap had gone so well to his advantage.

As Ashley and the other students left the classroom, Dr. Winchester walked back in, still holding the sleepy looking Thorough Heart. "Well, that was an unexpected success," he said as the little cub's head gravitated onto his shoulder. "You know, this could work out between the two of us. The students seem to be more receptive when you're around."

Teacher Bear walked in on Dr. Winchester's heart to heart talk with the little cub. "Dr. Winchester," she said, "I demand to know what on earth you are doing with my little cub." Dr. Winchester held his finger up to his lips. "I think he's about to fall asleep," he whispered, pointing to the droopy eyed cub.

Teacher Bear apologized as she gingerly took the cub from Dr. Winchester. "What were you doing with him in the first place?" she asked more quietly. Dr. Winchester gave a snide smile at the little blue bear. "Funny you should ask," he explained. "It was a little 'mishap' of sorts between Nurse Jones and myself. All details aside, things worked out quite well and my students learned what they needed to know about Apgar testing. I already have requests for his return to the classroom."

Though Teacher Bear was glad to know that her cub was helpful in an instructional way, she was still feeling uncertain. "What exactly do you mean by a 'mishap' between you and Nurse Jones?" she asked uncertainly. Dr. Winchester smiled and winked at the bear. "Call it doctor/patient confidentiality," he replied as he picked up the notebook that was left for him. "In the mean time, I have to prepare for my next lecture. I believe you also have a lecture to be attending this evening, yes?"

Teacher Bear smiled as she went to the door. "I'm glad you and Thorough Heart are finally starting to get along," she said. "We are," Dr. Winchester replied nonchalantly, not taking his eyes off the notebook. "In the mean time, would it be possible for me to borrow him on Friday? It looks like we'll be discussing a baby's first immunization and the best places to give babies a shot. Your little cub does make for an excellent demonstrative doll."

Teacher Bear's eyes widened, but Dr. Winchester reassured her. "We will not puncture your child," he said. "I just need to show the classroom where the shots will go. The students seem to really like him." Teacher Bear looked strangely at the old doctor. "No shots," she said sternly. "None at all," Dr. Winchester replied. "Now if you don't mind… my notes."

Letting out a contented sigh, Teacher Bear opened the classroom door. "Very well," she said, "but I will be keeping an eye on you."

*****

While Tugs and Lotsa Heart busied themselves with Auntie Freeze's beauty needs, Hugs and Proud Heart set to work freeing the natives. As soon as Jullo was freed, he took out his pocket knife and began helping free his friends from the rope. "Where will we go from here?" he asked as he cut the rope that held his father. Proud Heart stopped her rope cutting for a moment. "I hadn't thought about that," she admitted. "All I know is that these people need to go someplace where they can get warmed up quickly."

Nanya's face lit up as she thought of an idea. "Let us build a bonfire," she suggested in an eager whisper. "We can build it far away from the horrible woman so that she will not notice it. There is a small fire pit near the old well where we keep extra firewood." "Great idea," Proud Heart complimented. "Nanya, why don't you, your father, and Perfect get the fire started and start bringing people over to it. Jullo, you and Hugs follow me. We've got to get everyone freed."

Tugs watched with relief as the last part of his plan was coming to fruition. Though he never thought he would give a woman a make over in a million years, he was glad that he could set aside his prejudice of doing girly things in order to help the natives. Even Lotsa Heart seemed to really be getting into the act, which pleasantly surprised him. "You still doing good on your supplies Lotsa Heart?" Tugs said enthusiastically, winking as he watched the natives steadily escaping their entrapment. "I sure am," Lotsa Heart said, trying to stifle his joy as he watched Jullo free Big Mama Tantan and lead her to safety.

Everything seemed to be falling into place until a cold wind began to pick up. "Oh good," Auntie Freeze said, smiling so broadly that her mud face mask began to crack. "That must be old Cold Cubes with his ice machine. It's about time he got that rickety contraption up and running. This place is too hot for its own good."

Before long, the skies began to pour with sleet. Tugs and Lotsa Heart began to get worried as they watched Hugs, Proud Heart, and Jullo finish freeing the last few sets of natives. "Uh, how's your juice?" Tugs began to fidget. "You want some more juice? How about some more mud mask for your face? Maybe we can put some more salve on your heat rash?" Auntie Freeze lazily shook her head. "I'm just fine little fella," she said, leaning back to relax. "I'm just glad to feel colder weather coming in. Say, when can I take these leaves off my eyes? I'd like to see it when it starts snowing."

Tugs began to panic. "Uh, not yet," he said, keeping an eye on the natives that were still being cut from their ropes. "You've still got a couple more minutes to go on those before you're done." Auntie Freeze smiled contently as she began to yank at the leaves over her eyes. "Oh, I'm sure they're fine," she said as she tried digging the ends of the leaves out of the mud mask. "Besides, you can always reapply it later when we get back to Cold Heart's place."

The Care Bears were running out of time, and Tugs knew it. He signaled for Lotsa Heart to make a run for it, which was going to be a difficult task since their legs hadn't fully defrosted yet. Luckily for them, Hugs, Proud Heart, and Jullo had finished freeing all the natives.

Auntie Freeze began peeling the leaves away from her eyes, and what she saw made her furious. "You dirty double crossing little finks!" she screamed. "Get back here or I'll see too it that you never walk again!"

Seeing that Auntie Freeze was getting angry, Lotsa Heart turned around to confront her. "3, 2, 1, Cousin Call!" he shouted, hoping to use his special weapon of caring to stop her in her tracks. Instead of a steady burst of light coming from his tummy symbol, all he got was bad stomach cramps. "Uh oh," he said as he grabbed his aching stomach. "I don't think I've defrosted all the way, and that's the truth. Tugs, retreat!!!"

Getting up from her chair, Auntie Freeze searched frantically for the numbing freeze ray. Luckily for her, the Care Bears hadn't thought of hiding it from her. "I'll get you, you little tricksters!" she shouted as she shot wildly about, hoping to hit them.

*****

Teacher Bear returned to the playroom with Thorough Heart snoozing in her arms. "You look like you've had a busy day my dear one," she said as she opened the door to the playroom. "Thanks to you, Dr. Winchester seems like he's starting to adjust to life here in River Bend. I guess in a way that means we have something in common with him, don't we?"

She set the little orange weasel cub down on a blanket, lovingly wrapping him up next to two of his other slumbering siblings. The cubs that were still awake were acting fussy as Teacher Bear approached them for a nap. "I do wonder why he decided on Thorough Heart," Teacher Bear continued to ask herself as she started settling the other cubs down for an afternoon nap. "Surely he could have picked any one of these cubs. After all, Thorough Heart has been acting strangely lately, especially since Dr. Winchester showed up. That and Thorough Heart has been saying that awful word."

Nurse Jones poked her head in the doorway, checking in once again on her favorite patients. "How are they fairing?" she asked, looking a bit nervous as she stepped inside. Teacher Bear smiled appreciatively at the helpful nurse. "So far, okay," she said as she put a pacifier into Grateful Heart's mouth. "I'm just thinking about Dr. Winchester, that's all."

Nurse Jones began to look uncomfortable as Teacher Bear set the little green hedgehog cub next to the rest of his siblings. "Is that so," she said, nervously biting down on her bottom lip. "What all did he tell you?" "Oh, not much I guess," Teacher Bear said as she stepped away from her slumbering cubs. "Just that there was some sort of issue concerning you and Thorough Heart. He said that it wasn't a big deal, more of a doctor/patient sort of thing. Anyway, he said it was resolved and that Thorough Heart really helped him out today in his lecture. No harm done I'm guessing."

Nurse Jones let out a sigh of relief, happy to know that her little friend still trusted her. "I'm glad to hear that," she said, taking a seat near the sleeping cubs to watch them. Teacher Bear sat next to her friend, admiring the placid slumber of her little ones. "Nurse Jones," Teacher Bear asked, looking somewhat concerned. "Would you mind doing me a big favor?" "Of course," Nurse Jones replied. "What can I do for you?" "Well," Teacher Bear said. "Dr. Winchester said that he wants to use Thorough Heart again for his lectures. Could you help me keep an eye on him?" Nurse Jones nodded in agreement. "Of course honey," she said. "You can always count on me."

*****

Thrilled with his success, Cold Heart left Frostbite at the ice machine to see that it kept getting the snow that it needed. Now that the skies were beginning to produce a heavy snow storm, he was able to walk through the jungle much easier. "No more mud holes! No more plants!" he exclaimed, nearly singing and dancing with delight. "No more bugs in my underpants! This is fantastic! A plan actually working for a change! Yippee!!!"

With the ground being in a more favorable condition, Cold Heart was able to make it back to the center of the village in little time. However, he was surprised to see that the villagers were no longer tied up into little groups. "Auntie Freeze!" he screamed. "What in blue blazes is going on!"

Auntie Freeze looked back at Cold Heart with fury in her eyes. "I've been tricked!" she screamed, letting a random temperamental blast of ice out of the numbing freeze ray. Despite his anger, Cold Heart couldn't help laughing at the mud that was still caked on Auntie Freeze's face. "You look ridiculous, Auntie," he chuckled. Auntie Freeze's jaw tensed so hard with anger that more of the mud mask came crackling off. "Don't just stand there like a lump in an icicle! Help me!" she shouted, wiping her face furiously to get more chunks of mud off.

It wasn't hard to find where the natives had gone. Thanks to Nanya, Bunandi, and Perfect, a small bonfire was beginning to warm everyone slowly. "So, there you are," Auntie Freeze said, pointing the gun angrily at the group. "Prepare to meet the coldest part of hell you dirty heathens!"

Everyone cringed in fear as Auntie Freeze douced them once again with the numbing freeze ray. They were even more downhearted to see that the fire was beginning to go out due to the hard blasts from the freeze ray. The Care Bears and their friends huddled together near Big Mama Tantan, doing everything they could to keep the old woman warm. "I'm sorry," Tugs sobbed in Big Mama Tantan's ear, his tears freezing to his cheeks. "I tried. I did everything I could and I failed." Big Mama Tantan held the little blue cub as close as she could despite her muscles wanting to do otherwise. "You did well, little one," she replied. "Now we must be strong together, and pray to our ancestors that we will brave this storm."

The natives huddled together in fear as the air turned colder and colder, the heavily falling snow beating down on them like a sheet of sorrow. They all looked to Big Mama Tantan for strength and guidance, but the old woman was just as scared and cold as they were. "My people," she said to them all, "we must try to keep our spirits up as best we can, for I fear we may have another long journey ahead of us. I'm afraid we have lost our land of love, but we must not lose our hope."

Big Mama Tantan could see the natives weeping, their tears freezing to their faces. She could see the two wicked people laughing before her, their voices cackling louder than the cries of her people. She remembered how she felt when she heard the voices of those who oppressed her in the town at the bottom of the mountain, and the tears that flowed from her people's eyes at the voices of the oppressors. This seemed so familiar in so many ways, which is what made everything that much more hurtful.

The fire was down to its embers, dimly glowing in the small circle of rocks. She watched it intently, reminiscing about the night that she found the panda cubs and how by some miracle her people had found the valley the next day. She remembered the prayer song that she sang that night to her ancestors, begging for their guidance through her troubles. Big Mama Tantan began singing that song again, hoping that their guidance could once again help her find an answer to her woe.

At first, Big Mama Tantan was the only one singing the old Samoan song, singing in a low, throaty voice. As she sang, she could feel her heart begin to warm, a feeling that seemed to spread slowly but steadily amongst her people. As her people felt her warmth, they too began to sing, adding to the warmth that they felt. The Care Bears looked confused, but were glad to know that they felt warmer. Perfect noticed their confusion, and tried as best as he could to explain what was going on. "Do not be scared. Show no sign of alarm," he said, smiling as he felt the song within him. "Trust the song in your heart and sing, and you will be safe from harm."

As everyone, including the Care Bears, began to sing, they could feel a unified warmth about them. There was such a unified sense of warmth that even the fire began to feel it, and began to rebuild itself. When everyone felt the warmth continue to grow, they began to dance so that they could more easily spread the warmth of their love.

Cold Heart and Auntie Freeze were in shock at what they were witnessing. Cold Heart became furious at the sign of retaliation. "Don't just stand there gawking!" he commanded, pointing at the circle of natives. "Fire at them, Auntie! Freeze them all!"

Doing as she was instructed, Auntie Freeze let out a cold blast from her numbing freeze ray. Surprisingly, the blast from her ray gun wasn't doing anything. "It's not working!" she shouted. "The blasted thing isn't working!"

Trying again, Auntie Freeze blasted the group. As she did, the fire leapt into the air and began to heat the ice that the numbing freeze ray projected. The heated water quickly made its way up to the ray, making the gun too hot to hold. "Ouch!" Auntie Freeze shouted as she dropped the numbing freeze ray, grabbing her hand in pain as she let the gun fall onto a rock and break in half. Cold Heart dropped to the ground to examine the parts. "You idiot!" he shouted. "You broke it!" "I did not!" Auntie Freeze replied, glaring at Cold Heart as she held her hand. "It's those lunatic heathens and their crazy witchcraft!"

The natives and Care Bears continued their song and dance. Their spirited song and dance had helped them to defrost, though movement was still somewhat of a challenge. The snow and winds were still steady over Paradise Valley, but it did not stop the native's persistent singing and dancing prayers.

Before they knew it, the winds began to change direction, ushering in a warm, sweet air. The snow that fell began to change into the petals of Bunandi's ancestral flowering tree. The snow that layered the ground began to melt quickly, revealing the lush greenery underneath. For some reason, the heat seemed to radiate from the dancing, singing villagers, and they were not about to let up.

Cold Heart and Auntie Freeze panicked. "Well, Cold Heart, any suggestions?" Auntie Freeze said as she stared in disbelief at what was happening. Cold Heart began to back up in fear as the heat from the villager's love came toward them. "Run!" he shouted, turning on his heels. "Run while the getting's good!"

As Cold Heart and Auntie Freeze ran in defeat, the circle of natives continued to dance and sing. Big Mama Tantan seemed to have a glow about her as she led her tribe to their victory. "My people!" she shouted, her face beaming with pride. "Look around you. You have all set aside your needs for warmth and safety to draw strength from each other. You have each looked beyond your selfish wants to show your love for your ancestors, and in doing so you were able to save yourselves. It is the warmth of your love that has saved our home and driven away evil, and the ancestors have blessed us by showering us once more in their love."

The natives cheered as the petals continued to rain down on them from the clearing skies. Bunandi and his children fell to their knees, thanking their ancestors as the petals rained down on their happy faces. Jullo pointed to the shapes in the clouds, swearing that he could see face of his mother in the clouds as they quickly rolled away. Bunandi hugged his son as he watched the clouds leave, thanking his late wife for her continued love and blessings from the world beyond.

As the petals slowly stopped falling, Big Mama Tantan approached Hugs and Tugs. "My dear little children," Big Mama Tantan said, smiling broadly as she scooped them up. "I am glad most of all for the two of you."

Though they were happy, Hugs and Tugs were bewildered by what the elder meant. "Why us?" Tugs asked. "You got your home back. Isn't that what's most important?" Big Mama Tantan let out a grandmotherly laugh that shook her midsection as she set the cubs down. "I am grateful for the return of my home," she explained, "but you have both learned a great thing that will live with you the rest of your lives. You have learned to look beyond what you think limits you, and you have learned to use your heart to guide you. Tugs, you did something wonderful by distracting the bad woman with her vanity. And you, Hugs, used your quiet and careful steadiness to free my people from the ropes, just as a skillful hunter would in the jungle."

Hugs smiled as she thought about what she did. "Yeah," she said, smiling as she thought about what she and her brother had accomplished. "You're right. We did do things we thought we shouldn't be doing. Tugs did something girly by distracting Auntie Freeze with a make over, and I handled a knife like a boy would do. Oh goodie goodie gosh! We did do it!"

Proud Heart and Lotsa Heart hugged the two excited cubs. "You two did good," Proud Heart said, smiling contently at the two cubs. "I'm really proud of you two, and I know Grams Bear will be too." Lotsa Heart let out a loud, happy sound from his trunk. "Proud Heart's right," he said. "With the good attitudes and smarts you two have, it won't be long before you two become full fledged Care Bears, and that's the truth!"

Chapter 11: Homeward Bound, I Wish I Was

As a way to pay homage to the ancestors of the village tribe, everyone used as many of the fallen petals as possible. The people used the petals for decorating their houses, flavoring their teas, as ingredients in their cooking, or making them into face paints that they could decorate themselves with on special occasions. Big Mama Tantan even made a special soap from the flower petals to commemorate the occasion. What petals could not be used were burned ceremoniously.

The rest of the week was peaceful for Paradise Valley, and before they knew it, it was time for the visiting Care Bears to return home. Perfect brought out and assembled the communication device with the help of his friends. Not being very technologically savvy, Perfect was glad to have help from his friends in getting the communication device put together. "I appreciate your helping, for this is something I don't know," he said as he plugged the communication device into a generator. "Just a few more things to do, and you'll be ready to go."

Once contact was established between them and Care-a-Lot, Bright Heart Raccoon's voice was heard loud and clear. "This is Bright Heart," he said in his microphone. "All set to receive Good Luck Bear and his family?" Proud Heart picked up the microphone on her end. "All set," she said.

Within a matter of minutes, a bright rainbow beamed its way from Care-A-Lot. Within the rainbow the figures of Good Luck Bear, Polite Panda, and their twin daughters took form. "Hi everybody!" Good Luck bear said as he materialized. "We've missed you a whole lot. Anything exciting happen while we were gone?"

*****

As the week slowly came to a close, several workers around General Pershing's Veteran's Hospital were in a "TGIF" state of mind. The building buzzed with weekend plans, jealousy from weekend workers, and a general sense of ease as the day progressed. Even Dr. Winchester was getting in on the Friday hype that seemed to buzz around the hospital, sharing the same enthusiasm for the weekend that his students had. Of course, he wouldn't admit to this, and in his denial he decided to do something to ruin his student's weekends. On top of throwing a random pop quiz, he decided to give his students a sizable homework assignment. "Alright ladies," he said to his ensemble of students, "I am assigning a five page paper on the importance of pre-natal care, due Monday."

The class groaned unappreciatively, which put an ill gotten smile on Dr. Winchester's face. "Come now ladies," he said, "this is college. It's not meant to be all fun and games. Besides, the best paper will receive the privilege of working with myself and little Thorough Heart during one of our lectures."

As the class began to pack up to leave, Nurse Jones poked her head inside. "I hope I'm not interrupting," she said, waving at the little orange weasel cub. Dr. Winchester gave the nurse a snide look as she walked in. "You are," he said snidely. "We were just finishing up, so I will pardon you just this once."

Nurse Jones apologized as she looked at her watch. "I thought your class would be over with by now," she explained, getting a rather cold look from Dr. Winchester. "Well," Dr. Winchester said, looking at the clock on the wall, "you are correct about that. Anything you wish to say?" Nurse Jones looked nervously at Dr. Winchester, feeling him staring down at her. "I, uh, just wanted to check in on the little one," she explained. "I promised Miss Mulcahey I would check in on him from time to time while you worked with him."

Dr. Winchester rolled his eyes. "So, the little bear is antsy, is she?" he said, looking as dignified as he could. "Perhaps I should pay her a visit to ease her mind."

*****

Good Luck Bear was shocked and surprised to hear about the attack from Pr. Cold Heart, but was relieved to know that the inhabitants of the valley were able to fend the wicked scientist off. "I can't believe it! How did you survive?" he asked, displeased by the prospect of someone blatantly attacking his new home like that. Perfect set a reassuring paw on his brother in law's shoulder. "We banded together, and we all stayed alive," he replied, setting his family at ease. "Together we worked, and banded as one. We set aside our differences, and that's how we won."

Big Mama Tantan smiled reassuringly. "He speaks the truth," she said. "We had a great deal of help from everyone, including these two little cubs." Hugs and Tugs blushed as Big Mama Tantan recognized them for their efforts. "Ah, gee," Tugs said humbly. "Anybody would'a done it." Hugs gave her brother a big hug. "I don't think so," she said. "I don't know many boys willing to give mean old ladies make overs."

Everyone laughed as the two cubs joked. Nanya and Jullo joined their cub friends in a group hug. Nanya handed the cubs each a packet of seeds. "We will miss you," she said as she handed them the seeds. "To commemorate your stay with us, my family and I would like to give you seeds from our ancestor's wild flower tree."

Hugs looked at the seeds, smiling gratefully as she accepted them. "Thank you," she said, opening the pouch to take a look at the seeds. Jullo helped see to it that the pouch was secured for its trip to Care-A-Lot. "May each flower remind you of the things you have learned," he said, rustling the cub's hair in a friendly way. "Until we meet again, may you always find unity in your home."

Bright Heart's voice was heard coming from the communication device. "You guys ready to come home?" he asked. Proud Heart picked up the microphone. "Almost," she said. "Just give us a couple more minutes." "Okay, but I can only give you a few more minutes," Bright Heart said. "We've got everything gearing up, and we don't want to let it go for too long or it'll blow again. You know how goofy this thing is." In the background, Grumpy Bear's voice could be heard saying, "Hey! I heard that!"

Perfect hugged his friends from Care-A-Lot, sharing his appreciation for all that they had done. "It was wonderful to see you, and I'll hate to see you go," he said, looking deep into their eyes with appreciation. "I look forward to the day when we can again say 'hello.' Just know that you are always welcome to come and stay again. We all look forward to seeing you one day soon my friends."

Interrupting once again, Bright Heart's voice came through the communication device. "Okay guys! Get ready!" he said, sounds of the Rainbow Rescue Beam whizzing in the background. "If we wait any longer, this thing's gonna blow."

The visiting Care Bears stood back, allowing a beam of rainbow light to consume them. In a matter of minutes, their bodies were engulfed by light, and they began to glow before disappearing. The rainbow lifted high into the air, allowing the Care Bears to leave Paradise Valley.

Perfect stood back, watching as his friends disappeared. "I will miss them very much, but they should make it home alright," he said, keeping an eye on the rainbow until it disappeared from sight. "I'm glad to see the both of you. I'm sure you've missed us quite."

*****

From his ice castle, Pr. Cold Heart watched angrily as a rainbow whizzed out of Paradise Valley. "One of these days, you won't be so lucky you meddlesome Care Bears!" he shouted, throwing his binoculars deep into the cave connected to his ice castle. The binoculars impact made a dull thud that echoed throughout the cave, but the echo could barely be heard over the reverberating sound of Cold Heart's agitated voice.

Auntie Freeze rolled her eyes as she watched Cold Heart go on his temperamental spat. "Pipe down you fussy fudgesicle," she said, grabbing him by the scarf to get him to stop fidgeting about like an angry child. "Settle down before you hurt yourself. Temper tantrums won't get you any closer to defeating the Care Bears. Now calm down before your blood pressure gets too high." "Don't preach at me you incompetent old crone!" Cold Heart shouted, getting nose to nose with Auntie Freeze. "If it hadn't been for you and your beauty routine with those Care Bears, we would have had that valley! Why in blue blazes did you let them put that native nonsense all over your face?"

As Cold Heart and Auntie Freeze bickered back and forth, Frostbite went to retrieve the discarded binoculars. As he went to pick them up, he noticed something in the icy floor. "Hey, Pr. Cold Heart!" he shouted, his voice reverberating on the cave walls. "I found something!"

Breaking himself from his fight with Auntie Freeze, Cold Heart walked up to see what his assistant had called for. "What is it this time?" he said, bopping his assistant on the head as he approached him. Pointing at what he saw, Frostbite began trying to explain what it was. "It looks like an animal frozen in the ice," he said, knocking his knuckle against the ice where the animal was.

Taking a closer look at the creature, Cold Heart noticed that it was a giant panda. He noticed that it had a yellow tag hanging from its ear, bearing a series of numbers and letters. "Fascinating," he said, looking even further at the discovery. What amazed him even more was that the creature looked like it had posture similar to that of a human. It even looked like it had a sad, human like look on its face, its eyes closed in a way that it almost looked like it had been crying. Its nose was slightly heart shaped, but it was far too big to be a Care Bear.

Auntie Freeze made her way further down the cave, feeling angry that something could tear her away from her argument with Cold Heart. "What are you staring at?" she shouted, startling her two accomplices. Cold Heart jumped at the sound of Auntie Freeze's voice. "Don't do that!" he shouted, covering his ears as Auntie Freeze's shrill voice echoed off the walls. "Your nephew found an animal frozen in the floor. From the looks of it, it looks like some sort of a Care Bear missing link."

Auntie Freeze stared at the creature in the floor. "Great," she said sarcastically. "We've got a frozen live in Care Bear thing living in our foundation. What do you propose we do now? Have a cook out?"

Cold Heart rolled his eyes at Auntie Freeze's sarcasm. "If you are done," he said, "we can continue. If you look at the tag on this creature's ear, you'll notice a series of numbers and letters. Perhaps if we look into what those numbers mean, we can gain a better understanding of what's going on. Frostbite, where did you put my computer equipment?" "Uh," Frostbite said, scratching his head in thought. "I haven't put it up yet."

Cold Heart bopped Frostbite on the head. "You bumbling block head!" he shouted, his voice bouncing angrily off the walls. "Why haven't you put out my computer equipment yet?" Frostbite smiled sheepishly, rubbing the spot on his head that his superior had hit him. "Uh, well Pr. Cold Heart," he explained, "I couldn't find a plug. It seemed kinda silly to bring in computer stuff if I couldn't find a place to plug it in."

Cold Heart was at a loss for words. "There's hope for you yet," he said, patting his assistant on the head to reward him for having something surprisingly smart to say. "Let's get the generator in here and start building electric receptacles. There's not a moment to lose!"

*****

Dr. Winchester walked up to the receptionist's desk, looking for Teacher Bear. He was glad to see her busy working on her filing. "Good afternoon, Miss Mulcahey," he said drolly, holding the enthusiastic Thorough Heart. "Ah, good to see you, Dr. Winchester," Teacher Bear responded, holding out her arms to retrieve her cub. "I do hope everything is going well with Thorough Heart and your classes. You didn't give him any shots today in your lecture, did you?"

Dr. Winchester handed the cub to its guardian, who looked happy to see her. "No shots. I swear on it," he said. "In fact, he's become quite the little ladies man with my students. It seems that everyone wants to pay attention to him. Perhaps I can persuade you to let his siblings become a part of my lecture?"

Teacher Bear looked concerned as she thought about the request. "I'll have to think about that," she admitted. "I have to confess, I've been sending Nurse Jones in to keep an eye on you. She and I will have to talk about this." "Understandable," Dr. Winchester replied. "I have noticed your nurse friend spying in on me. Tell me, is she always so… nosey?"

Teacher Bear couldn't help blushing, especially since she knew how spacey Nurse Jones could be sometimes. "I wouldn't call her nosey," she said, "but she is as she is and I appreciate that simple honestly that she has about her. Please don't worry much about her. I assure you, her intentions are good, and I trust her judgment. She's a very good friend and a big help to my family and I." "Be that as it may," Dr. Winchester responded, "I do not appreciate her interrupting my lessons. Perhaps we can work out an arrangement so that she can keep up her eavesdropping and I can keep up with my lessons."

The old doctor and the bear shook hands in agreement. After all, it was good for Teacher Bear to know that they were finally beginning to get along, even it was only slightly. "I'm afraid I have to get back to my filing," Teacher Bear said. "In the mean time, I'll need to take Thorough Heart back to the playroom. We'll see you at home after I get done with class, okay?" "Very well," Dr. Winchester replied. "Hopefully this time there will be no added colors in this evening's food." Teacher Bear giggled uncontrollably. "Now, Dr. Winchester, you know I can't guarantee that," she joked. Looking unenthusiastic at the joking bear, Dr. Winchester began to grimace. "Perhaps we should order out than?" he replied, causing Teacher Bear to giggle even more.

Dr. Winchester waved sheepishly as he turned around, leaving the bear and weasel at the desk. "Goodbye," he said drolly, making eye contact with the weasel cub. Thorough Heart waved innocently at the old doctor before saying, "Bye-bye Twit!"

Chapter 12: Idle Friday Night

Everyone was glad to see that Proud Heart, Lotsa Heart, Hugs, and Tugs had gotten home safely, and everyone was surprised by the stories they told of their travels. They were allowed to talk all about it during their welcome home dinner in the Hall of Hearts. Everyone was surprised to hear that Pr. Cold Heart and his cronies had attacked Paradise Valley, especially since they hadn't heard from the mad scientist in several years. The fact that the Care Bear visitors were able to take down Pr. Cold Heart and his cronies in such an unusual but effective way both startled and amused them.

After dinner was finished and the dishes were cleared away, Proud Heart, Lotsa Heart, Hugs, Tugs, and Grams went to the Forest of Feelings to plant the seeds they had gotten as a gift from Paradise Valley. It was a nice, clear, star filled night with a full moon reflecting on the ripples of the Rainbow River. Star Buddies buzzed about, lighting the way as the planting party made their way to into the Forest of Feelings to plant the seeds.

Proud Heart suggested planting the seeds next to the Rainbow River so that they would get the water they needed to grow. "They grew nicely by the river in Paradise Valley," she explained. "They'd be best to grow in a place similar to what they had in the valley."

The party began digging small holes in the clouds about a few feet away from the water. When ten small holes were dug into the clouds, the cubs began placing seeds in them. As Tugs began covering one of the holes over, he began to think fondly about the valley. "Proud Heart," he said dreamily. "How long do you think it'll take for the plants to start growing?"

Proud Heart smiled sweetly as she filled her watering can with water from the Rainbow River. "I'm not sure," she said tenderly as she handed Tugs the watering can. "Only time can tell I guess. We just have to be sure to give the seeds lots of love and care like the people of Paradise Valley did and just wait to see what happens."

Lotsa Heart gazed at their work with pride as he finished covering the holes. "These will be beautiful by the river, and that's the truth," he said as he wiped sweat from his brow. "Planting them here will let everybody be able to share in their beauty."

Hugs finished making a small sign to place by the seeds that said "Please be careful, seeds growing from Paradise Valley," as she let her brother water the ground. "We should probably check back with them every couple of days," she suggested. Tugs smiled and gave his sister a big wink. "That's a great idea Hugs!" he said as he poured water over the seeds. "Hey, maybe we can take pictures of their growing so next time we visit the valley, we can show them how the plants are growing." "What a nice idea," Hugs said, giving her brother a hug. "I bet they'd love to see the progress and not have to worry about leaving the valley. After all, a picture's worth a thousand words, right Grams Bear?"

Grams gave the cubs a big, grandmotherly hug. "You two sure have learned a lot on your trip," she said proudly, giving the cubs each a kiss on the forehead. "It's things like this that let me know you're growing into fine Care Bears. Now, it's getting awfully late. We'd best get home and get some rest, especially you two. You've had an awfully busy week!"

Everyone looked back lovingly at the cloud ground where they planted the seeds before leaving them to natures will. Hugs and Tugs waved goodbye to the seeds as they disappeared from their view. They anticipated their growth and development, but knew that they just had to be patient. Like Big Mama Tantan told them, the best way for things to grow is with patience and love.

*****

For a Friday night, the house of Klinger was fairly dull. Dr. Winchester was fairly unimpressed by the lack of activity in the house, but expected it none the less considering the size of the town. The TV was showing reruns of an Andy Griffith marathon while the cubs either played or snoozed in the playpen. Soon Lee was in the kitchen cleaning up the dinner dishes while Klinger was out to pick Teacher Bear up from her night class.

Dr. Winchester was half paying attention to what was on the TV as he sat back on the couch with baby Thorough Heart next to him. He was grading the pop quizzes he had assigned to his reluctant students that afternoon as the little orange weasel cub doodled away in a blank notebook. Dr. Winchester was grateful that the class only met three days a week instead of every day, especially since he found the content rather dry compared to what he was used to doing daily at Boston General.

"Pickle!" Thorough Heart said as he held up another one of his many crayon drawings. Dr. Winchester glanced at the doodle out of the corner of his eye, letting a smile escape from his normally cool demeanor. "Green and purple," he commented. "Fascinating color combination. What ever inspired that one?" "Twit!" Thorough Heart replied, gurgling before turning to a fresh page in his notebook.

As the cub went back to his enthusiastic doodling, Dr. Winchester went back to his quiz grading. "Hmmm," he said, looking over one of the quizzes. "Looks like Ms. Phelps has the highest score so far. It looks like the obnoxious little twerp pays attention after all." Thorough Heart looked at the paper and began to giggle. "Twerp!" the cub exclaimed, pointing at the paper and laughing at the fun new word he had just learned. Dr. Winchester rolled his eyes nonchalantly as the cub experimented with the new word. "I do hope your little bear friend doesn't overhear you saying that," he said.

"You hope I don't overhear him saying what?" came Teacher Bear's voice from the front door. Dr. Winchester looked over at the open door, half smiling at the returning residents. "Good evening, Klinger. How was class tonight, Ms. Mulcahey?" he said as the two came into the house. Teacher Bear let out an annoyed sigh. "I got my test back tonight," she said, holding up the test for the old doctor to see. "I got a C+. I studied so hard for this test, and all I got was a C+! I thought I would do so much better than this."

Dr. Winchester could see that the little bear was upset, and he understood why. He often worked very hard to high marks when he was going through college and felt the same way whenever he would get marks lower than what he hoped. He appreciated the fact that the little bear held herself to such high standards. Most students would be thrilled just to pass a test, much like the students whose tests he was grading, but the fact that the little bear wanted better was rather endearing. "Tell me," he said, "were you able to find out the marks of any other students in your class?"

Teacher Bear thought for a moment about the marks of some of the other students. "Well, a couple of my friends from class got low B's or C's like I did, and my friend Julie ended up getting an A-. Why do you ask?" she said. Dr. Winchester looked over the disappointing test, trying to find what she got wrong. "Well," he said, "depending on some of your friend's schedules, perhaps you could look into forming a study group. I often worked in study groups when going through pre-med, and that helped me out tremendously."

Though Teacher Bear appreciated the bit of advice, she pointed out the fact that the cubs would need her too. "It's not like I can just leave them unattended, and I'm sure some of my fellow classmates won't want me to bring my children along. I'd feel like I was imposing if I asked them." Dr. Winchester scoffed at the idea. "Nonsense. I'm sure they would love to stop by to study, that is, if the Klinger's are comfortable with it," he said, looking to Soon Lee as she came out of the kitchen. Soon Lee looked over at Dr. Winchester untrustingly. "I don't appreciate you making plans about my house," she said, "but I know how responsible Bluebelle is, so I'd be glad to work something out with her."

Teacher Bear thanked Soon Lee for her confidence in her, and promised to keep the house in order. "Study sessions would be a good idea," she said appreciatively. "Thank you for letting me hold them here Soon Lee, and thank you for the idea Dr. Winchester." The old doctor nodded impassively. "You have allowed me the use of your child. It is the least I can do," Dr. Winchester replied, going back to grading his quizzes.

Teacher Bear smiled in spite of herself. Father Mulcahey said that Dr. Winchester had a rather impartial way of expressing himself when he began taking a liking to someone, so Teacher Bear took this as a good sign. "I thank you none the less. In the mean time, I should get some bottles ready for the cubs before they go to bed," Teacher Bear said as she picked Thorough Heart up from the couch. "How would you like a nice bottle of formula my little dear one? Does that sound nice?"

Thorough Heart smiled at Teacher Bear as she was lifted from his seat on the couch. He snuggled his head against Teacher Bear's shoulder as she held him and spoke to him. After taking his paw out of his mouth, he pointed at Dr. Winchester, saying something Teacher Bear had never heard him say, "Twerp!"

To be continued…

Works Sited

Most important to me is giving credit to whom it belongs.

Father Mulcahey is my favorite character from the very popular television show M*A*S*H. M*A*S*H is loosely based on a real Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (the 8055th) in Uijongbu, South Korea that was stationed three miles from the front lines of battle during the Korean war, 1950-1953. M*A*S*H also happens to be my all time favorite television show, although that doesn't keep me from loving the Care Bears!

Although M*A*S*H was very successful, all good things must come to an end. After an impressive 11 season run, M*A*S*H concluded. Some of the actors (Harry Morgan, Jamie Farr, and William Christopher) in the show did not like seeing the show end and were able to persuade the directors to create a spin off show that came to be called After M*A*S*H. After M*A*S*H takes place at General Pershing's Veteran Hospital, a fictitious hospital in River Bend, Missouri. After M*A*S*H was not nearly as successful as its predecessor and was canceled during its second season.

The Care Bears and Care Bear Cousins are property of American Greetings and Nelvana, as you all know.

I got the name "Bluebelle" from my mother. That's what she called her first car.

Dr. Silverberg is the name of my mother's thyroid doctor.

10930 Brindle St. is not a real address as far as I know. I named it Brindle since my mom's two dogs have brindle (black and brown) fur. It sounded catchy enough.

The situation involving Dr. Winchester and Dr. Baldwin is based on the M*A*S*H episode "Fade Out, Fade In." It was in this episode that Major Winchester was introduced to the show. In this fic, he is referred to as Dr. Winchester because he is retired from the military.

The story of the songs and dances used to heal the plants comes from the book "All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten." The chapter talks about a native people who shout at trees in order to kill them. They do that to break the tree's spirit in order to make it easier to cut the tree down, describing how people are the same way.

The following locations are real: Boston General Hospital, Logan International Airport, Kansas City International Airport, Mount Ruapehu in New Zealand, and River Bend, Missouri.

Sweet Baby James is one of many hits written by James Taylor. He wrote the song as a lullaby for his nephew, James Richmond Taylor, upon learning of his birth in 1969.

Shultz Bed and Breakfast is a fictitious place made up entirely for this fan fic.

Believe it or not, the Kum and Go Gas Station is the name of a real gas station chain peppered around the Midwest. The name is just too oddball and hilarious to pass up. (Insert crude comment here…)

"Come Lord Jesus, be our guest, and let this food to us be blessed. Amen." is a standard mealtime grace. This is also the grace that my in-laws use.

"You Baby," is a song written and sung by Sonny and Cher. There is also a well known alarm clock joke associated with the song in the movie Groundhog Day starring Bill Murray.

Further information about Apgar testing can be found here: .com/0_the-apgar-score_

I would like to thank my friends for all their help with getting this story off the ground: My friend Take Care Bear for being the first one to hear about my fan fic ideas, my dear friends and big fans Aqua Bear and Wilson Kieran Kitsune for proof reading the fic and giving me feedback, and my good friend Records Raccoon for letting me bounce ideas off of him simultaneously with Wilson Kieran Kitsune. The two of you guys gave me many fun, goofy, laugh filled nights on yahoo IM discussing story ideas. The story would not be what it is if it hadn't been for you three wonderful guys!

Also, to anyone who reads this long, drawn out fan fic, thank you very much! After all, if it wasn't for you readers, there would be no point in writing. Now give your weary eyes a break! ^_^ THANKS!


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